How To Get A Beijing Transport Card

Beijing subway map 2010-2011

It won't be long after arriving at the Beijing Language and Culture University that you're going to want to start doing a bit of exploring around the city. Most of the time, this will probably entail taking buses or using the subway system.

For destinations that are in a bit more of an awkward area, you may have to resort to taking a taxi at least some of the way. Wherever you decide to go in Beijing, you're going to be using the transport system a lot during your time at BLCU and that's why I recommend you get a transport card as soon as you can.

Getting and using a transport card

The Beijing transport card works in exactly the same way that London's Oyster or Hong Kong's Octopus cards do. You will have to put down a 20 RMB deposit for the card itself plus a minimum of 10 RMB available spending, so that's 30 RMB altogether to get you going. This can be done at any ticket office in any of the Beijing subway stations. The nearest and most convenient to BLCU would be the Wudaokou station, which is only a 5-10 minute walk from campus.

Once you're sorted out with a transport card you can use it on the subways and also the buses. They advertise it as being usable in taxis too but in my 12 months studying at BLCU I never once managed to do this. The driver would always say no and you'd have to pay cash. So really it's limited to subways and buses, but that's good enough for most people.

Beyond the convenience of not having to pay cash each time you travel and queue up at ticket machines, I heard that people using a transport card also get 60% off city bus fares. For me, this was always reason enough to take one out and I imagine it would be for most people living in Beijing for any length of time. If you're going to be using the subway and buses a lot, get a transport card.

Returning your transport card

When you come to return your transport card, you may be surprised to learn that you can't return it to the Wudaokou station's ticket office, even if you were issued it there. Apparently there are 62 sites set up across Beijing to where you can return you card, but from my count there are only 15 located in subway stations. The rest are at overground locations including a number branches of the China Citic Bank. 

If you are living in or around BLCU, I believe the nearest station for you to return your card to would be Xizhimem on Line 2, just a few stops and one change south of Wudaokou. The conditions for returning your transport card are that it is well-preserved and the balance is under 100 RMB. Assuming all is fine, you will be refunded the remaining balance and deposit on the spot.

Below is a list of all the stations I know of where you can return your transport card to:

Line 1 Guchenglu, Sihui

Line 2 Fuxingmen, Xizhimen

Line 5 Lishuiqiao, Yonghegong, Dongdan, Songjiazhuang, Xizhimen

Line 8 Jianguomen, Beitucheng

Line 10 Shaoyaoju, Zhichunlu

Line 13 Dongzhimen

Airport Express T3 of Beijing Capital Airport

I hope this post has helped in some way or you've learned something you didn't know before. So, what has your experience been using the Beijing transport system?

One last thing...

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