Mr Viral
In early May, temperatures in Foshan, a city neighboring Guangzhou in southern China’s Guangdong province, soared above 30 degrees Celsius. Inside the city’s metro system, commuters made their way through dimly lit corridors to board muggy metro carriages, feeling the effects of the system’s lights and AC having been powered down.
On one station platform, a metal fence blocks access to a downward escalator. A nearby notice reads: “In response to the national ‘dual carbon’ energy-saving and environmental protection policy, this escalator is temporarily out of service.”
These measures hint at the financial pressures the metro’s management has faced in recent years. Despite receiving substantial government subsidies, Foshan Metro Group has recorded annual losses of over 100 million yuan ($13.9 million) for two consecutive years and continues to post below-average passenger numbers compared to China’s other metro-equipped cities.
Then, on May 6, it was announced that all lines would close 30 minutes earlier starting May 8. The adjustment echoed similar cuts the metro has made since March, when its Line 2 shortened operating hours, citing “equipment and facility maintenance,” only for train intervals to be permanently extended by 1 to 2 minutes.
Foshan Metro Group explained to domestic media that the move was part of a broader initiative to “reduce costs and increase efficiency.” Other measures include limiting escalator use and setting train air-conditioning to “energy-saving mode.” These efforts are projected to save over 10 million yuan annually.
According to Foshan Metro Group’s 2024 annual report, the metro system generated only 586 million yuan in operating revenue against a total operating cost of 2.689 billion yuan — nearly five times higher. Even after receiving over 2 billion yuan in additional income, mainly from fiscal subsidies, the metro posted a net loss of 178 million yuan.
A Guangzhou Daily report revealed that Foshan has experienced a dramatic surge in private car ownership and electric scooter usage over the past 15 years. By 2023, the city had registered 2.8 million electric scooters – equating to one scooter per 3.4 people.
Data from the Ministry of Transport’s April 2025 “Urban Rail Transit Operations Report” shows that Foshan’s metro system covers 150.2 kilometers, ranking 21st nationwide in terms of length. Yet its passenger traffic intensity — the number of daily passengers per kilometer — was just 3,500, far below neighboring cities like Guangzhou (13,200) and Shenzhen (15,400), and also trailing smaller cities such as Fuzhou (6,400), capital of the eastern Fujian province, and Wuxi (5,700), in the eastern Jiangsu province, which have comparable network lengths and populations.
Hu Gang, founding president of the South China Urban Research Association and professor at Jinan University, told domestic media that the country’s metro systems are not meant to be sustained by ticket revenue alone. “In the past, the land appreciation effect around stations brought substantial returns. Governments used rising land values to fund operations. But with the real estate market in deep adjustment, this land-finance-driven subsidy model is under real pressure,” Hu said.
Approximately 75% of Foshan Metro’s 2024 income came from fare revenue. Unlike Shenzhen or Chengdu, capital of the southwestern Sichuan province, where commercial and transit-integrated developments contribute 30-50% of their metro’s takings, Foshan has not yet diversified its income streams.
Currently, subway fares in Foshan follow a mileage-based pricing model, ranging from 2 yuan to 12 yuan. Based on the 180 million trips recorded in 2024, average fares would need to increase sixfold for ticket revenue alone to cover operating costs.
Hu believes the solution lies in innovation: “It’s essential for Foshan Metro to learn from the experience of other cities and explore diversified business models to identify new growth areas under today’s changing circumstances.”
In the meantime, Foshan Metro Group continues to expand the city’s metro system in hopes of encouraging ridership.
Editor: Tom Arnstein.
(Header image: At a metro station in Foshan, Guangdong province, Aug. 23, 2024. VCG)
