Of course it’s 地铁 (ditie)!

You can now access www.exploreshanghai.com/ditie/ for quick access to the Chinese version of the map.

Lines 6, 8 and 9 will shortly be opening!

The new version of the metro map is now at the main URL www.exploreshanghai.com/metro/ – although accessing www.exploreshanghai.com/metro08/ will continue to work.

I’ve also added an image-only version of the map if you’re stuck without Flash.

Visits to the site are up dramatically over the last few days as people come looking for information about the new lines!

One day to go before all the new lines open!

I have added to the metro map

• first train/last train information for all major stations
• more accurate journey times for new lines
• the free shuttle bus connecting line 9 to the other lines (see below)

More updates for journey times and prices will follow in the next few weeks.

Some small updates to the metro map, fixing some station names. Getting the English names correct is a bit hit and miss! Shiji Avenue and Shiji Park seem to have reverted back to being Century Park and Century Avenue, while 源深体育中心 is translated to Yuanshen Stadium. And is it Xizang Road (S) or South Xizang Road…

Once the new stations open on December 29th it should be possible to check exactly what naming is used on the station signs!

Robert Schwandl runs the superb Urban Rail site (here’s the page on Shanghai and a map of planned future extensions). Robert contacted me, asking

If you have access to recent and detailed info about the Line 2 extension to Hongqiao Airport and how it will meet line 10 and the mainline railway etc. that would be very appreciated as I get so many different versions.

If anyone has any authoritative information please let me know and I’ll pass it on.

For various reasons there are some stations in Shanghai that look like interchanges but actually aren’t: if you want to change trains you must leave the station, take a long walk, then buy a new ticket.

In the latest version of the metro map these are marked with a black line between the two stations. The hall of shame consists of:

1. Shanghai Railway Station

Transferring between Line 1 and Line 3/4 involves a long walk down a shop-lined passage.

2. Yishan Road

You can’t interchange between line 3 and line 4 here, even though it looks like that on many official maps. You need to go at least one stop north, to Hongqiao Road.

3. New! Pudian Road

The two stations at Pudian Road will eventually be joined by a tunnel and commercial center. For now, they are separate.

4. New! Hongkou Stadium

The latest news is that the Line 3/8 interchange will also not be ready this year

An update to the metro map is now online! At the end of the year, three new lines, as well as extensions to existing lines will open:

• Line 6 will run through Pudong, connecting with Line 2 and Line 4
• Line 8 will run north-south through the city with an interchange at People’s Square
• Line 9 will run westwards out to Songjiang. Amusingly, it won’t connect with the other lines yet.
• Line 4 will finally become a circular route with the opening of three new stations
• Line 1 gets a big longer at the northern end, terminating at Fujin Lu

You can view all the new lines here, note that this is a beta version, notably

• There is no first train/last train data for the new lines yet
• The route planner doesn’t have information for the new lines yet
• There are no pronunciations of the new stations yet (coming next week)
• Some of the English station names may be subject to change (e.g. Dashijie vs Great World)

If you spot any errors in the new map please contact me or post a response below.

I’m sorry to report that the ExploreShanghai city map will be taken offline at the end of the year.

Unfortunately due to work commitments I haven’t had time to really finish it or implement new features, and that looks unlikely to change for the foreseeable future. Shanghai still desperately needs a good English-language online street map, and if you want to develop one I wish you good luck!

The good news is I will continue to update the metro map with new lines, stations and features: see the next post for more details!

keep exploring

matt