As a large number of passengers are on their way home via the station, the Zhebei High-speed Passenger Transport Center in Huzhou, Zhejiang, has recently been exposed as a 'star project turned dangerous building.' On the 27th, reporters learned from the Huzhou municipal government that, according to the appraisal report, relevant departments have promptly taken fixed safety protection and isolation measures. The Huzhou Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection and the audit department have also successively intervened in the investigation.
The passenger transport center was put into use in February 2007, but since 2010, there have been continuous indoor water leakage and uneven ground settlement, which in turn caused deformation of the building's load-bearing structure.
An appraisal report issued by Zhejiang Zhongji Construction Engineering Testing Co., Ltd. in August last year showed that the structural safety of the station's concrete was rated as Bsu level, which can meet the structural safety requirements for normal use, while the structural safety of its steel structure curtain wall was rated as Csu level, which does not meet the structural safety requirements for normal use, significantly affects the overall load-bearing capacity, and measures should be taken.
Reporters saw at the site that fixed safety protection and isolation measures have been taken for the front glass curtain wall and the canopy area of the passenger transport center, and passengers have changed routes to enter and exit the station. Xie Zhonghua, the center's director, said that the expert group they invited had given the opinion that the station should be suspended from use.
In response, Meng Lizhong, deputy director of the Huzhou Municipal Transport Bureau, said that the appraisal report issued by the legally designated appraisal agency should prevail. Relocating the station to the old South Bus Station does not conform to the overall urban planning and comprehensive transportation planning, and 'the old South Station has been abandoned for more than ten years, and its safety is still questionable.'
A responsible person from the Huzhou municipal government said that the next step will be to conduct another comprehensive inspection by a professionally qualified agency based on the original appraisal report, and to carry out rectification and repair according to the new appraisal results. The audit department entered the passenger transport center in December last year to launch an investigation. The Huzhou Municipal Commission for Discipline Inspection has also intervened in the matter to investigate whether relevant departments have committed dereliction of duty, misconduct, or laziness, and if verified, they will be severely punished according to law.