Beijing's "Stand-In-Line" Days

Laura Robertson
CBN News
February 11, 2007

What's so special about February 11th?  It's the birthday of Thomas Edison, the day Robert Fulton patented the steam engine, and National Youth Day in Cameroon.  But this year, on the 11th of February, and the 11th of every month this day, Beijing has instituted a special "stand-in-line day."

The recent advent of these "holidays" brings up two important questions: why on earth would Beijing institute a stand-in-line day, and why did they choose the 11th day?

Generally, Chinese people don't stand in line, but during these special days, everybody will have to wait their turn.  In an elaborate and elegant government proclamation, Beijing leaders express their views on how citizens standing in line will create a more harmonious society.   This means that in places like subway stations and bus stops, special guards will be around to make people line up. 

Of course, it can't just be any day that people have to stand in line, but it must be the 11th day.  Why?  Because 1-1 looks like people standing alone in line.  In the same vein, China's Singles Day is 11-11. 

In general, Beijing residents aren't too thrilled with this idea, and on some radio call-in shows, people were wondering: why tackle this issue specifically?  Why not take a more aggressive stance against crime or littering or jaywalking?

Furthermore, while standing in line at a place like a movie theater, department store, or airport seems pretty equitable and efficient, what about other places, like the subway or bus?  Yes, there are crowded subway stops and bus stops, and in an ideal world, the first to arrive will be the first to board, but with multiple doors, and multiple trains that could go to different places, is it practical to make everybody line up?

So while Beijing officials hope that these days will create a more orderly society, my bet is that especially for busy commuters, convenience will ultimately win out over the desired "harmonious" order of mandatory lines.