China orders rail passengers to get off trains

BEIJING (Reuters) - China is trying to stamp out protests over rail delays ahead of the Beijing Olympics, threatening passengers with legal action if they stay aboard their train once it has reached its destination.

"Refusing to leave the train will be regarded as an illegal act endangering train safety," the China News said, citing a long list of unlawful measures proscribed by central authorities.

There have been several instances of Chinese passengers refusing to leave their trains after serious delays, demanding compensation and an apology from state-run railway operators.

According to the latest Railways Ministry order, passengers are prohibited from protesting or hindering the railway by crowding the aisles or refusing to leave the carriage.

"When there are train delays, passengers should take legal action to protect individual legal rights via normal channels," the semi-official news service said on its online Web site (www.chinanews.com.cn).

In the report, jointly released by the ministry and the Public Security Bureau, passengers must conform in order to ensure a safe and orderly environment before the Games taking place in the capital in August next year.

China's railways are the busiest in the world, moving 24 percent of global rail traffic with just 6 percent of the world's tracks, according to analysts at Deutsche Bank.

The Railways Ministry plans to add another 17,000 km (10,500 miles) of track to the current 76,000 km by 2010.