Having broken the cardinal rule that is not to leave Jiangsu quite a few times of late, this correspondent feels the time is right for an update from the field as regards foreigners and their train tickets. And there is good news indeed.
Once upon a time, pre epidemic, it was possible for foreigners to make online purchase of tickets for travel on trains in China. But there still necessitated a trip to the railway station to pick up the ticket(s). That’s all changed, and for the better.
Today, those tickets can still be bought online using an app such as Alipay. However, foreigners need to be first registered in the ticket booking system. This can be done in person at a railway station ticketing booth or online using the official China Railways app, 12306. After that, say good bye to those ticketing-queue blues.
Upon entry to the station, presenting your passport is now normally all that is required. It is possible that staff may also ask for your ticket information, in which case a screenshot of the purchase will suffice.
Then come the passport readers. Mainland Chinese nationals have for some time been able to use facial recognition to pass through the turnstiles and access the station platform. That time-saving technology has now been joined by passport readers, usually located to the side of the turnstiles.
At Nanjing South Railway Station however, each and every turnstile has a passport reader installed. In the event that your passport is not recognised, as was the case on occasion for this correspondent, staff will complete the check manually.
In addition to passports, the readers are also able to recognise QR codes and other kinds of identity documents, such as Hong Kong ID cards. Chinese nationals unable to use the facial recognition system may also scan their ID cards using the readers which began being rolled out last year.
To date, over the last couple of months The Nanjinger has test driven the ticketless foreigner concept at a multitude of stations across the Yangtze River Delta, in addition to Anhui Province and Shanghai Municipality.
While much added convenience is afforded by these latest developments, there remains a snag. For those lucky enough to be traveling on business and able to put the cost of the ticket down as expenses, there is no escape. Get back to the ticket office, to once again queue for that blue piece of card required by those paper-clip counting Chinese accountants.
Oh, and there’s another snag to train travel in post-epidemic China; increased vigilance on the part of security officers. At Chizhou Railway Station in Anhui Province, The Nanjinger had its hairspray confiscated. The cheek of it. Should have did as we were told and stayed home.
