Commuters in the city of Changchun in northeast China’s Jilin Province are in for a treat as its first “3D-painted” bus has started operations on Monday, Sept. 14, according to local media reports.
The No. 229 bus, which has a "sea tour" theme that evokes a feeling of "diving into the sea" according to media reports, is owned by Beida Co. and conceptualized by company employee Wang Zhi as part of a competition.
"I've seen 3D buses in other cities and suggested that we have one here," Wang said. "We planned to hand paint but it was too expensive so we used spray paint, designing the figures on paper first then covered the paper to protect it from wear."
The decorations, which cost around 2,000 yuan ($314) to make, include dolphins, starfish, sharks, sea turtles and other marine life, which, coupled with an overall blue theme, make passengers more relaxed especially during traffic jams, said Wang.
The technique seems to have worked, as local media reports have quoted local residents as supportive of the project.
"I take the bus to work every day and the decoration makes me feel good on the way," Zhang Min, a Changchun resident, was quoted as saying in an article published in Jilin's official website on Monday.
Bus driver Gu Zhenning said that several passengers have asked him for the bus timetable so that they can bring their families and friends to ride along.
"I'm even happier than the passengers working in such a comfortable environment," he added.
The No. 229 bus currently runs from the Yanminghu villa to the lakeside streets and stops at Beihuancheng Road, the Kuancheng Traffic Department, Qinglin Road, Haoyue Road and West Changyang Road.