China debates whether to install children-only carriages on trains

A senior Chinese railway official has waded in on a debate over whether to install compartments on trains for “spoilt children.”

Huang Xin, a senior official at China Railway Corporation has said that the idea of the family carriages is “very creative.”

The idea of having carriages for “bear children” has been widely discussed on social media site Weibo.

Bear children is a term used to refer to spoilt youths, according to the BBC.

It comes as the country prepares for Chinese New Year, a holiday in which 413 million trips are made by train.

For some, the Chinese New Year holiday is the only time they get to spend with their family for the entire year.

Huang Xin said: “If it is necessary to concentrate noisy children in one compartment then all public transport will face a similar situation. Some people may suggest that all those who like to watch movies and listen to music be concentrated in one compartment.

“A good travel environment needs to be created together and we also appeal to passengers to travel in a civilised way to create a good travel environment.”

On social media site Weibo, the idea of a child carriage received mixed reviews.

One user said: “Very supportive!”

While another wrote: “The key lies in the quality of the parents.”

One added: “I don’t support this. I want to have children in the future and I don’t want to sit in that compartment!”

The Chinese New Year travel rush kicked off on Monday.

According to China Daily, nearly three billion trips are expected to be completed between January 21 and March 1.

The travel peak is expected to take place on February 5 when migrant workers and students hit the road at the same time to return home.