Luoyang aims to become 'Chinese Culture City'
Century-old jade disc found confirms ancient legend
A serious mind behind Chinese leader
Panda Cubs to Predict 2014 World Cup Winners
China Southern Airlines flight attendants win titles in service contest
Pupil's performance art persuades people to stop smoking
Nie Chenxi's clay tigers
Children's Day wishes
Chinese Kung Fu charms Silicon Valley
Tranquil Yankou ancient town
![]() |
| A passenger walks past a post promoting the upcoming World Cup at the Renmin University station on Line 4 of the Beijing subway. [Wang Jing / China Daily] |
A plan to adorn each station on Beijing's subway Line 4 with the name of one of the 32 soccer teams playing in the World Cup has been dropped, much to the disappointment of frequent travelers.
A statement from Beijing MTR Corp, which operates the line said the plan was cancelled to avoid confusion among passengers who are not familiar with the line, which has 35 stops.
"In order to ensure the safe operation of the subway and passenger convenience, and to avoid unnecessary impact on passengers, none of the name tags of soccer teams playing in the World Cup will appear in stations again," the company said on Weibo on Tuesday.
Last week, the names of soccer teams were placed above the names of stations on a trial basis to "create an atmosphere for the World Cup" according to the company's statement. A placard with the name and flag of Spain was placed above the sign for Xidan station, while Renmin University station had a sign for Brazil.
But two days ago, the subway operator began taking down the signs.
According to the statement, the signs were taken down due to online concerns that the soccer teams' names may cause confusion among passengers, especially those who are not familiar with Line 4.
"I don't understand why they took the signs away," said Fu Weixin, 23, a finance student at Renmin University of China.
"I've never seen a cooler change in the subway than this. It was so awesome."
Liu Ye, 23, who was on a Line 4 train heading north, said, "It was quite a shame that they cancelled it.
"I don't think passengers will be confused just because of the soccer teams' signs. The original signs are still there," he said.
Not everyone found the company's decision to remove the names hard to understand.
"There are so many visitors in Beijing. They're not that familiar with this city," said Li Yang, 34, who was born and raised in the capital.
"It makes sense, as they may get off at the wrong stop. When people complain, the company of course backs off."
Beijing strips off in summer
Heat waves hit China
Love at the construction site
Graduation photos bring memories back to life
Art school students present works in Nanjing
Xinjiang's first high-speed railway goes on trial run
3D Sea-life Themed Art Garage unveiled in Zhengzhou
Creative Photos go viral during graduation season
Students in last-minute effort for Gaokao
Top 20 hottest women in the world in 2014
Dali, an ideal summer vacation destination
Xichan Temple's little monk hit the Internet
Monologue of a modern dancer
College girl proposes to boyfriend on Weibo
Special operation members in counter-terrorism trainingDay|Week|Month