"No Riding if Dressed as a Ghost"… Chinese Subway Station Limits Passengers Ahead of Halloween

China restricts subway access for passengers in Halloween costumes
"Unnecessary measure" vs "Should not cause inconvenience"

In some subway stations in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, passengers wearing scary costumes are being restricted from boarding ahead of Halloween. The reason is that citizens in Halloween makeup may cause fear or discomfort to other passengers.

According to the Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 23rd, a video titled "Subway Station Where Makeup Is Removed" has recently been spreading on Chinese social networking services (SNS). The video shows women in makeup using their smartphones as mirrors to remove their makeup with cotton swabs and other tools.

[Image source=Pixabay]

The video is rapidly spreading with the hashtag "#Subway security asks passengers to remove makeup." Guangzhou Metro authorities told the local media Xiaoxiang Xinbao, "During the Halloween period, if passengers wear scary makeup, we can ask them to remove it before entering the subway station."

SCMP explained, "Guangzhou Urban Rail Transit passenger guidelines prohibit walking barefoot or wearing clothes or makeup that cause fear," adding, "This means Halloween makeup can be banned because it may scare passengers."

Passengers are removing their Halloween makeup at a subway station in Guangzhou, China. [Image source=South China Morning Post (SCMP)]

The media also reported, "This regulation is being applied at Hanshi Changlong subway station near Changlong Theme Park in Guangzhou, where Halloween festivals are held." Station staff at this station are known to provide water, tissues, cotton swabs, and facial cleansers so passengers can remove their makeup before boarding the subway.

This is not the first time that passengers wearing Halloween makeup have been restricted from boarding subways in China. In 2019, a Chinese woman dressed as a ghost was blocked and refused boarding by Guangzhou subway security personnel. The woman wore purple eye makeup, black lipstick, and black clothing.

The woman said on her Weibo, "Subway security guards said there was a problem with my makeup and that it was too scary, so they asked me to remove it."

However, Chinese netizens have shown mixed reactions to such measures. While some criticize them as unnecessary, others argue that citizens should maintain awareness to avoid causing inconvenience to others.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.