Passengers expose Beijing Subway’s blind spot

Local subway passengers united in an uncharacteristic display of solidarity to aid a blind Japanese traveler ride the subway with his guide dog, after staff attempted to prevent the man and his dog from entering the electronic gates.

Beijing Subway spokesman, Jia Peng, told the Global Times yesterday that he was afraid allowing the dog to enter the subway would give rise to safety concerns.

The blind man, Japanese visitor Akihiro Arakawa, had taken his dog Crystal to meet a local guide dog named Jenny, owned by Chen Yan, a blind piano tuner. Arakawa had learned of their story on the Internet, said Kiyomi Nawa, a Japanese expatriate and Arakawa's friend.

"Akihiro's short visit is over, and he was very impressed and moved that so many strangers reached out to help," said Nawa.

A one-minute video uploaded to Youku on Saturday shows a blind man with his golden Labrador retriever guide dog being prevented from entering Tiantongyuan Station, Line 5, while a circle of passengers question the staff as to why. Staff members are heard repeating "the rules say so."

The video caption said that passers-by escorted the man and his dog with a "human wall." It had been viewed about 60,000 times by last night.

Guide dogs are currently banned from Beijing's subway and other transportation networks. Jia said the passengers' action broke subway operating regulations and said that allowing the dog to enter would undoubtedly cause extra work for staff, as he thought staff would need to follow the man and his dog to ensure safety.

However, earlier in the day, the dog was allowed to ride the subway with her owner by staff at Dongsishtiao Station on Line 2.

"It's never been a problem in Tokyo, because it's legal for guide dogs to enter any public place," said Nawa.

"We wondered if Beijing adopts different policies at different stations, but [at Tiantongyuan] the staff kept saying 'sorry, these are the rules,'" said Nawa.

After passengers intervened, the two men and the dog were able to complete the return journey on Wednesday last week, said Nawa, adding that Arakawa and Crystal have already returned to Tokyo.

It has always been difficult for blind residents with guide dogs to access Beijing's transport network, said Chen, who struggles to travel around the city. Jenny is the seventh guide dog in Beijing.

Chen said she has tried to enter Tiantongyuan Station on 11 previous occasions with Jenny, and each time she was stopped.

Other cities nationwide have already enacted legislation enabling guide dogs to ride on subways.

On May 19, authorities in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, announced that guide dogs are allowed to ride the subway and had trialed the accessible facilities in the stations with dogs. Jinan, Shandong Province, passed a bill to grant guide dogs access to public transportation which will take effect in September.

Li Caimao, director of policy research at Beijing Disabled Persons' Federation, said the capital must guarantee guide dogs access to public transport, as a national law will be adopted by the end of this year.

"A draft of national regulations on accessible facilities for disabled people includes the guide dog issue, and any legal obstacles will be gone," said Li.

But judging from the comments posted about the video, it seems many commuters would have no problem sharing a train with a guide dog, although some are concerned about the overcrowding.

"During the rush hour, there's not enough air to breathe or room to put both legs down, so I hope the dogs will stay calm and help their blind owners to survive," said Cao Ling, a Line 10 commuter.