PETALING JAYA (Feb 19): Beijing has begun charging users of new lifts installed in old residential apartment buildings in a trial scheme, reported the South China Morning Post.

Citing The Beijing News, the publication said the lifts will cost 0.2 yuan (12 sen) per ride and users will pay the fares with a top-up card.

The scheme was rolled out with the opening of the first lift in the Daxing district last week, with 10 more lifts to be installed in old buildings throughout the capital this year.

The cost per month for a family of three to use the lift is estimated to be 60 yuan to 100 yuan, said the firm that installed the lift; this compares with a similar scheme that was first implemented in the Haidian district of Beijing, except that residents were instead charged a monthly “subscription fee” for the lifts.

“Residents don’t need to pay construction and maintenance fees. They pay only according to their needs,” said the lift company’s chief designer Zheng Hongan.

He added that the company also plans to place advertisements in the lift to cover construction costs.

The lift — which can carry up to five people — was installed on the outside of the building last November.

There are a further 2,264 old buildings in Daxing constructed prior to 2006 that do not have lifts, said The Beijing News.

SHARE
RELATED POSTS
  1. Beijing tightens Covid-19 curbs as new cases appear
  2. No reports of Covid-19 transmission via food in Malaysia, says health D-G
  3. Woman fired and to be deported after breaking quarantine in Beijing