Railway staff lend a real helping hand_其他_趣味英语-查字典英语网

Railway staff lend a real helping hand

Many passengers have unpleasant experiences of traveling in public transport. They have memories of being directed here and there by staffers or confronting a cold face when seeking information. Others remember being scolded for some unintentional offense.

Admittedly, railway employees' attitude has improved significantly in recent years. It is not uncommon to see carriage conductors helping the weak and senior citizens to their seats.

But I suspect they do so more out of concern for the "performance assessment" in the annual selection of "advanced train" and less because they sincerely want to help passengers. But there indeed are some staffers who are sincere and kind-hearted, and they do help passengers.

What makes me suspicious is the difference in attitude I have seen when there is no such assessment or selection in progress. You just have to walk to a ticket counter or a station entrance and see the cold, rigid faces of employees and hear their answers to find out whether my judgment is right or groundless.

But the Dongguan railway station case is different. The staffers were definitely not acting to get favorable assessment when they helped the passengers get into the train through the windows. On the contrary, they were running the risk of getting a demerit point, because they were violating the rules. Anyone who has seen the photographs will agree that those staffers were sincere.

Boarding a train through a window is what a passenger should never have to do but sometimes has to in our country, because the railways' capacity to carry passengers is far short of the demand, especially during festivals.