Women on track

Is it necessary for Beijing's subway lines to have separate coaches for women? This has become the topic of a heated debate after a member of Beijing CPPCC (Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) committee proposed separate subway compartments for women in his motion early this year.

Protecting female passengers from sexual harassment is the main reason advanced by the member for mooting such a proposal. The subway authorities responded by saying that they needed to study the situation and would probably run some reserved coaches on a trial basis on some lines.

True, some subway lines are so crowded that women commuters quite often feel embarrassed when caught in the crush of men all around. And, there are indeed wolves among males who take advantage of being crowded to sexually harass women within reach.