Heat puts major strain on Metro track workers
Print Edition
FOR the city’s Metro maintenance workers, summer has always been a challenging season.
Forty-year-old Li Weiyong and his 29-member team are responsible for signal equipment maintenance between South Shaanxi Road and Xinzhuang on Metro Line 1. To ensure everything is operating properly on the line, they spend at least four hours a day carrying out inspection and maintenance work.
“The hot weather puts extra strain on the tracks and equipment, and we have to carry out more frequent inspections and maintenance to spot potential dangers in advance,” Li said.
“Usually, maintenance work is carried out in an area once every two weeks, but in summer it is once a week.”
With so little shade along the tracks, the temperature can reach more than 50 Celsius degrees in the afternoon.
In the sweltering heat, Li and his colleagues are inspecting the tracks. Their light-blue shirts, and even trousers, soon grow dark with sweat as they repeatedly bend down to examine the tracks.
Each inspection patrol, which is usually carried out between noon and 2pm, takes over an hour.
“To get a proper understanding of the condition they are in, you have to check them during the hottest time of day,” Li said.
“For example, if the temperature is too high, the metal tracks, which expand when it is hot, will crush the insulator,” said Li, pointing at a small piece of rubber between the tracks.
“If the insulator is crushed, the tracks will touch and cause a signal error. Trains will then be unable be able to run along the affected tracks.”
One of Li’s jobs is to ensure that the damaged insulators are spotted and replaced in time, and that the tracks are pulled away in time to leave enough room for thermal expansion.
The outdoor work is harsh, but the underground part of the job is also demanding.
The passengers enjoy cool air in the trains and underground stations, but the heat discharged by the air-conditioners on the trains accumulates inside the tunnel.
“The air is hot and stuffy, but it’s good that there’s no sun,” Li said.
Li has been doing the job for two decades, personally witnessing the development of the city’s Metro system.
“This is not an easy job and that’s why it requires more responsibility,” Li said.
“If there’s an error, the line will not be able to operate as normal and many passengers will be affected.”
Shanghai Shentong Group, the Metro operator, has nearly 10,000 maintenance workers on its payroll.
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