Subway pseudonyms

What’s that old Chinese proverb? “If you’re going to change something, just do it bit by bit -- never all at once.”

Okay, maybe it’s one of the lesser known proverbs. In any case, it would seem to be the modus operandi behind the Shanghai Metro at the moment. On a ride on Line 2 today we noticed that a couple of new station names have been stuck on some of the diagrams lining the station walls and trains (not all, just a few).

Since Pudong is ... how shall we say this ... not exactly at the epicentre of our sphere of activity, we’re unsure if the Dong Fang Road station (until recently “Closed For Renovations”) has reopened. Nor do we know if it has reopened as “Shiji Avenue” (i.e. "Century Avenue"). Nor, quite frankly, do we particularly care. But for anyone writing or updating a Shanghai map or guidebook at the moment, or someone wanting to meet a new arrival at a particular station, it may cause a mild headache.

We’re also wondering about the change from “Century Park” to “Shiji Park”. Why the same name but a mix of pinyin and English? Does this mean that the actual park which has always been referred to in English as Century Park should now be called Shiji Park?

Renaming streets to avoid confusion is a popular thing in Shanghai. In fact, there are plans underway to rename hundreds of streets and change 20,000 address boards and traffic signs.

It could be handy if the subway was included in that plan.

Whatever. Shanghaiist prefers getting around on one of these anyway.