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SHANGHAI SUNDAY 22 JUNE 2003
This is my first business trip to Shanghai since Easter due to the SARS outbreak but, with the potential risks of SARS and the lack of good photography at this time of the year, I chose to stay in Shanghai city for the weekend. With weak sun followed by overcast weather, I was able to enjoy 35degC and no steam exhaust!!
Shanghai has always been reported to be relatively SARS-free - whether this was due to government manipulation or good fortune is hard to determine. However, there are few visible signs of the problem :
SHANGHAI No. 5 STEELWORKS
Located in Puxi, 30km north of Pudong centre at the junction of TongJi Road and ShuiChan Road (tel : 5667 9080). My office tried to get me permission to visit the steelworks but we were refused entry and so I visited on spec on Sunday when there was likely to be no management working. My Chinese colleague was refused permission at the first security gate that we approached because he mentioned photography. On ShuiChan Road, no mention was made about photography at the gate nearest to TongJi Road. We were allowed unrestricted access but asked to be careful!! We kept a low profile and I only took cameras out of my rucksack when taking pictures. We did not encounter any problems.
Present on the shed :
In steam SY 1744 (built 1993)
Not in use but appeared complete SY 1666, 1742, 1755
SY 0880 was in use shunting the furnace building
SY 1576 appeared at the shed with empty wagons.
As previously reported, there were also 2 single cab narrow gauge diesels at the furnace building :
DM 822 shunting small crucibles into an adjacent yard
DM 820 shunting bar from the adjacent building
SY | 0880, 1576, 1666, 1742, 1744, 1755 |
---|---|
ng diesel | DM 820, DM 822 |
SHANGHAI COKING & CHEMICAL CORPORATION
This operation was reported in CRJ but extensive searching failed to reveal anything about the company not listed in the telephone directory, Yellow Pages or known to the staff at No. 5 Steelworks. Driving around the area failed to reveal a working coking plant, although this may be a winter-only operation.
Can anyone shed any light on the location of this plant and/or any contact details?
CNR
A new timetable has been published in May 2003 although it claims to be only a reprint. It has been reformatted but I could not see any obvious timetabling changes. Certainly the trains that I have previously used were unchanged eg. Beijing to Chifeng.
MAGLEV
It is my understanding that before SARS there was a daily train running for tourists. My office tried to get me a ticket for the Maglev but was told that it had been suspended because of SARS but that tourist tickets will be available from 5 July 2003. I will confirm this when I visit next month.
Greg Howell
24/6/03