Train's ski-gear ban

“滑雪专列”禁带超规雪具禁带超规雪具

Skiers in Beijing planning a bullet-train ride to a nearby resort cluster now have to think again.

北京的滑雪爱好者们如果正计划乘坐高铁前往附近滑雪胜地的话，可能得三思了。

A new regulation banning large carry-on ski equipment on the high-speed railway linking Beijing and Zhangjiakou's Chongli district in North China’s Hebei province has irked users of the service.

近日，连接北京市和河北省张家口市崇礼区的高铁线路不再允许携带大型雪具，惹恼了一众滑雪爱好者。

Starting Tuesday, skis or snowboards measuring over 130 centimeters were prohibited on the train, with passengers now required to pay extra fees - almost equal to the ticket price - for delivering their over-sized gear on another train.

11月17日起，京张高铁崇礼支线列车不再允许携带长宽高之和超过130厘米的雪具乘车，乘客只能为超规雪具购买另一辆列车上的快运服务，快递费用相当于又购买了一张高铁车票。

The train's limited luggage capacity had resulted in ski bags being packed precariously into overhead racks, blocking aisles and taking up seats, thereby posing safety risks, China Railway Beijing Group said in a statement.

北京铁路局发布声明称，列车上行李放置空间有限，造成大量雪具堆放在座位上方的行李架上、堵塞通道、挤占旅客乘车空间的现象，形成安全隐患。

Li Hongchang, a professor of integrated transportation at Beijing Jiaotong University, suggested that the train operator could offer special carriages for passengers with over-sized ski bags at a slightly more expensive ticket price. "Then you could transport the skiers and snowboarders together with their gear while avoiding inconveniences for other passengers," Li said.

北京交通大学综合交通发展研究院教授李红昌建议，铁路部门可以给携带超规雪具的乘客提供专门车厢，该车厢票价略高于普通车厢，这样就可以让滑雪爱好者携带雪具上车，同时也避免给其他乘客造成不便。