Recently, according to the Foshan Municipal Government website, the "Foshan Urban Rail Transit Management Regulations (Draft for Comments)" (hereinafter referred to as the Draft) has been officially released and is currently soliciting public opinions widely. In order to provide strong legal protection for the construction, management, maintenance, and operation of Guangzhou-Foshan integrated urban rail transit, the Draft sets out specific provisions in multiple aspects. Regarding the construction of Guangzhou-Foshan interconnection projects, the Draft proposes that the construction model for Guangzhou-Foshan urban rail transit interconnection projects shall be determined according to the principles of local construction and unified coordination, and the technical standards and requirements for project construction shall be unified across the entire line.

According to the Draft, "urban rail transit" as referred to in the "Foshan Urban Rail Transit Management Regulations" means urban rail public passenger transport systems such as subways, light rail, and trams.

Policy Background

Providing Legal Protection for Urban Rail Transit Construction and Operational Safety

It is understood that Foshan plans to issue the "Foshan Urban Rail Transit Management Regulations" in order to standardize urban rail transit management, ensure the safety of urban rail transit construction and operation, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of passengers, and promote the sustained and healthy development of the urban rail transit industry. To this end, the Foshan Municipal Rail Transit Bureau, in accordance with the requirements of Foshan's 2021 legislative plan, studied and drew on the legislative experience of other cities, summarized and refined Foshan's main practices, and drafted the "Foshan Urban Rail Transit Management Regulations (Draft for Comments)".

In the context of advancing the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the full-scale integration of Guangzhou and Foshan, Foshan's rail transit has developed rapidly in recent years. In 2010, China's first cross-city subway line, the Guangzhou-Foshan Metro, opened. From an average daily passenger flow of less than 100,000 at the beginning of operation to nearly 600,000 today, the metro has become the main force in transportation connecting Guangzhou and Foshan. According to the current rail transit network plans of Guangzhou and Foshan, the future interconnection planning system of the two cities will consist of 18 connecting corridors, covering the Guangzhou-Foshan urban boundary from south to north, basically achieving comprehensive connection of the Guangzhou-Foshan rail transit networks.

This year, the second-phase construction plan for Foshan urban rail transit (2021-2026) was officially approved, and Foshan plans to start construction within the year on three projects: Phase I of Line 4, Line 11, and Phase II of Line 2. As the number of lines under urban rail transit planning, construction, and operation increases sharply, the coverage of urban rail transit continues to expand, planning control tasks become heavier, protection zone management and facility protection work become more severe, and safety requirements during the construction and operation periods of urban rail transit become increasingly high. Based on the above reasons, and to promote more scientific and smooth planning, construction, and operation of rail transit in Guangzhou and Foshan, Foshan urgently needs to issue management regulations for urban rail transit to provide legal protection for urban rail transit construction and operational safety.

Highlight Interpretation

Foshan Characteristics: Rail Transit Department Responsible for Supervision and Management of Construction and Operation

Regarding the management system of urban rail transit, legislation in various parts of China is largely similar. However, on the basis of drawing on legislative experience from various places, the Draft also highlights Foshan characteristics. In 2019, Foshan underwent a new round of institutional reform, integrating the rail transit construction and management responsibilities of the Foshan Municipal Bureau of Land and Resources and Urban-Rural Planning and the Municipal Transport Bureau, among others, to establish the Municipal Rail Transit Bureau. The Foshan Municipal Rail Transit Bureau was officially established, becoming one of only two rail transit bureaus in China.

In this context, unlike other cities, Foshan has specially established a rail transit department to specifically undertake municipal and district rail transit industry management and law enforcement work, organize the drafting of urban rail transit development policies and implementation measures, and organize the compilation of urban rail transit construction plans, technical standards, and annual plans. Therefore, the Draft clarifies that the rail transit department is responsible for the supervision and management of Foshan's urban rail transit construction and operation and for organizing the implementation of these Regulations. This codifies the responsibilities of the rail transit department in regulations and is also conducive to advancing the rule-of-law management of Foshan rail transit.

Guangzhou-Foshan Integration: Establishing a Series of Coordination Mechanisms for the Entire Construction and Operation Process

In the context of Guangzhou-Foshan integration and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Guangzhou-Foshan urban rail transit projects play an important role. Therefore, coordinated legislation for Guangzhou-Foshan rail transit is an important feature of this Foshan urban rail transit legislation. It is reported that during the initiation and drafting of the "Foshan Urban Rail Transit Management Regulations", the legislative affairs committees of the Guangzhou and Foshan municipal people's congress standing committees signed the "Cooperation Agreement on Strengthening Coordinated Legislative Work Between the Two Cities"; the Guangzhou and Foshan municipal governments also issued the "Guangzhou-Foshan Urban Rail Transit Interconnection Action Rules"; and under the leadership of the legislative affairs committee of the provincial people's congress standing committee, the legislative affairs committees of the Guangzhou and Foshan municipal people's congress standing committees consulted on important issues in the urban rail transit legislation of the two cities and reached consensus.

The Draft not only specifically provides in the General Provisions for the principle of Guangzhou-Foshan coordinated development, but also establishes a series of coordination mechanisms around the entire process of urban rail transit construction and operation, and some content converges with Guangzhou local regulations. Regarding planning coordination between Guangzhou and Foshan, the Draft proposes that when compiling the urban rail transit network plans of Guangzhou and Foshan, the two cities shall simultaneously carry out Guangzhou-Foshan rail transit integration planning or connection planning, fully solicit the other city's opinions, determine the overall technical plan for the Guangzhou-Foshan regional network in a coordinated manner, and then submit it for approval separately according to regulations, and incorporate the approved network plan into the urban territorial spatial plans of the two cities as the basis for compiling urban rail transit construction plans.

Regarding the construction of Guangzhou-Foshan interconnection projects, the Draft proposes that the construction model for Guangzhou-Foshan urban rail transit interconnection projects shall be determined according to the principles of local construction and unified coordination, and the technical standards and requirements for project construction shall be unified across the entire line. In addition, regarding the Guangzhou-Foshan operational interconnection coordination mechanism, Guangzhou and Foshan shall establish and improve cross-regional passenger service standards and coordination mechanisms, regularly exchange operational information, and ensure one-code access for urban rail transit in the two cities and safe and orderly operation of connecting lines.

Funding Guarantee: Establishing a Special Fund for Rail Transit Development

In the future, funding input for Foshan rail transit projects will exceed 100 billion yuan, and guaranteeing construction and operation funds is particularly critical. The reporter learned that at the current stage, Foshan urban rail transit project funds are managed according to the principles of "unified planning, unified construction, and unified operation", with the municipal level coordinating planning, investment and financing, construction management, and operation affairs, while operating loss subsidies and asset renewal funds are shared by the districts along the lines according to the proportion of mileage passing through their jurisdictions.

From the experience of various places, Foshan's existing method of raising urban rail transit project funds, in which districts along the lines share costs according to the proportion of mileage passing through their jurisdictions, is not of universal significance and is not long-term. Therefore, the Draft proposes that in terms of funding guarantee, the Foshan Municipal People's Government shall establish a special fund for rail transit development to guarantee investment in urban rail transit construction and operating loss subsidies; the raising and use of the special fund for rail transit development shall follow the principles of "government leadership, market operation, and diversified fundraising". In addition, the Draft also proposes that the income from comprehensive development of urban rail transit shall be included in the special fund for rail transit development for use in rail transit construction and operation.

At the same time, in order to ensure the lawful and compliant use of the special fund for urban rail transit development, the Draft also includes a reminder provision on supervision of the special fund: "The finance and audit departments of the municipal people's government shall supervise and manage the special fund for urban rail transit development in accordance with their respective responsibilities".