After paying seat prices for standing-room-only tickets, two passengers riding between Guangzhou and Shenzhen decided to sue the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Railway Corporation arguing that their rights had been violated under China's Contract Law and the Consumer Protection Law.
The Guangzhou Railway Transportation Intermediate Court has agreed to hear the case and has set March 6 for opening arguments.
The two passengers, Mr. Lei Chuang and his friend Xiao Yan, are asking the court to order the railway company to refund half the price of the ticket and pay for all legal costs. According to Mr. Lei, charging passengers the price of a seat without actually giving them a seat to sit in is unfair and unreasonable.
The two apparently purchased the tickets earlier this month for 88.5 yuan (U.S. $15) from the the Chinese Railway Customer Service website 12306.cn for the K9004 train departing from Shenzhen. Their destination was Shaoguan East Station. Once on the train, they discovered that all the seats were occupied, leaving them with no other choice but to stand throughout the ride.
Mr. Lei's argument is that while it seems reasonable for a price differential between a sleeper ticket and seat ticket, it is unfair for the railway to receive money for a seat without providing a seat.
Consequently, Mr. Lei and his friends submitted their complaint to the court. Mr. Lei said he was very surprised that the court accepted to hear his claim, but admitted that winning the claim was not the most important goal of the lawsuit. What was most important, said Mr. Lei, was using the litigation process to enhance people's awareness of their rights.