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China to welcome first female train drivers
By:Wu Qiong  |  From:english.eastday.com  |  2019-08-21 13:09

China will welcome its first female train drivers in 2021.

This August, the China Railway Shanghai Group recruited 39 trainees who will become the nation’s first female train drivers after two years of training.

Aged between 20 and 24, the trainees are braced up for their future posts. Wearing a white uniform with special badges, they look full of confidence.

"People may not know much about the work of a train driver. They might think it is a man’s job,” said Hang Ziqing, aged 24. However, when she chose the major of electrical engineering and automation at college, she was determined to work with the railways.

Hang’s brother is a pilot working at an airline company in Shenzhen. Admiring her brother, she submitted her application upon learning about the recruitment of female train drivers. “My brother is a pilot in the sky, and I will become a pilot on the land,” said Hang with pride. She also wants to break the stereotype that females are not good at driving.

Aged 20, Lu Xinning was born into a family of railroad workers. Her father, grandfather and aunt are working in the railway industry. Lu said she spent her childhood near the railroad. Although her major at college was not related to railways, meaning that she has had to work harder to catch up with others, she said with a smile, “I am happy to do what I like.”

In the next two years, Lu and her fellows will undergo tough training so as to pass the national qualification exams. Once they become train drivers, they have to work in line with the same busy schedule as male drivers. Even though it is the Spring Festival, they might have to work on shift. In spite of the foreseeable hardships and difficulties, the young ladies are still perseverant in pursuing their dream.

(Photos by Gong Junqi)

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