Second phase of Metro Line 11 may open on weekend

The second phase of Metro Line 11 is ready and will be put into service as early as this weekend, the subway operator in Shanghai said Tuesday.

Line 11 currently runs between downtown Jiangsu Road and northern Jiading District. The just-completed southern second phase will link Jiangsu Road to Luoshan Road in Pudong.

The extended line will have 12 more stations and is expected to take some of the pressure off Metro Line 2 — the city's busiest line ferrying over 1 million passengers on average every day.

The city now has 12 Metro lines in service that serves more than 7 million people every day.

It will take about 40 minutes to travel from Jiangsu Road to Luoshan Road Station. Line 11 also interlinks with Line 1 and 9 at Xujiahui, and Line 6 and 8 at the Oriental Sports Center.

The Metro operator, Shanghai Shentong Group, did not give any specific date for the start of the newly extended line, except saying that it could possibly start running by this weekend.

Luoshan Road Station will also be the junction for Line 16, which runs northeast toward Dishui Lake in Pudong's Nanhui area. Line 16 is tipped to be completed by the end of the year.

Being the only elevated station in the 12-stop second phase of Line 11, the Luoshan Road Station has been split into three floors. The Line 11 platform is on the second floor, while the Line 16 platform on the third floor.

There is a minor hurdle though. With an expressway project coming up along Luoshan Road, it will be difficult for passengers from north to reach the station.

To deal with the situation, the Shanghai Construction and Communications Commission plans to operate a circular shuttle bus service that will pick up commuters from Luoshan Road, Jinke Road and Kangqiao Road E.

Two new bus routes will start operation by the year end, connecting the Luoshan Road Station with Longyang Road Station and Zhangjiang High-Tech Park Station.

Some of the new stations on Line 11 have unique designs that reflect the surroundings. The Longhua Temple Station has golden ceilings and a mural painting wall made of colored china.

The Jiaotong University Station has elements like manuscripts belonging to scientist Qian Xuesen.