Railway passengers, metro riders, and even those mailing packages will undergo increased scrutiny.
On the eve of the Chinese Communist Party’s 19th National Congress, which is to open on October 18 in Beijing, China has launched strict new security checks in the whole country, particularly in the capital.
For railway stations, all passengers heading toward Beijing from any other city have to undergo a double security check before boarding. After a regular security check, those passengers traveling to Beijing will be gathered into a special area for a second check. Multiple cities, such as Shanghai, Hohhot, and Bengbu, are even using facial recognition security systems to ensure safety. Each person has to present their ID cards and train ticket and undergo a facial scan before entering the station.
For metro stations, the security checks are also tight. The Beijing Metro announced that, starting on October 17, all passengers will have to go through a full-body check and a package scanner simultaneously. Some busy metro stations will even limit the flow of people within the stations by implementing forced lines outside. The Beijing Metro suggested that passengers avoid traveling during peak hours and asked for their understanding and cooperation. Some large cities such as Nanjing and Guangzhou also have upgraded their security checks in metro stations. Guangzhou, for example, invested nearly 2.67 billion yuan (around $400 million) to purchase 855 pieces of security equipment and employ 12,000 security inspectors in September just to upgrade security checks.
