China announced a series of policies to expand senior-friendly tourism services and senior-accessible trains at a press conference on Tuesday in Beijing.
China's population of senior citizens topped 300 million in 2024 bringing new demands for better elderly care services and improvements in the quality and enjoyment of seniors' daily lives.
In response, the Ministry of Commerce, China Railway Group and other departments, released a joint action plan to boost senior-friendly tourism with accessible trains as the centerpiece of the new approach.
Officials say the number of tourist train trips has increased significantly in recent years and, with the expanding elderly population and a growing demand for tourism, the potential for developing elderly-friendly tourist trains is considered huge.
"By 2027, over 100 high-quality routes for senior tourists are expected to be designed, with more than 2,500 elderly-friendly tourist trains in operation," said Zhu Wenzhong, deputy director at the Passenger Transportation Department of the China Railway Group.
According to the action plan, a comprehensive network of senior-friendly tourist trains will be established by 2027, featuring diverse routes, specialized themes and enhanced services for elderly travelers.
Officials emphasized infrastructure upgrades and renovations, making trains and scenic spots more accessible and comfortable with designs specifically catering to the needs of the elderly.
Establishing common standards for senior-friendly travel will be key to improving facilities for senior citizens.
"We need to optimize the services for elderly passengers, deploy professional medical and elderly care personnel on board, and ensure that medical expenses incurred during the journey can be covered through national medical insurance," said Kong Dejun, director of the Department of Trade in Services and Commercial Services at the Ministry of Commerce.
China promotes accessible trains to meet growing demands of elderly population
Russia said on Wednesday that its armed forces gained control over a settlement in Zaporizhzhia region in southeastern Ukraine, while Ukraine said on the same day that its armed forces attacked multiple Russian strategic infrastructure.
The Russian Ministry of Defense said in its latest report that Russian forces brought under controlled the Zarechnoye Settlement in Zaporizhzhia Region and attacked Ukrainian troops in the direction of Sumy and Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine over the past 24 hours.
The ministry also said that over the past day, Russian forces struck Ukrainian military-industrial enterprises, energy facilities, transportation infrastructure, and temporary deployment points of Ukrainian troops and foreign mercenaries across 147 locations.
Meanwhile, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in a war report released on Wednesday that Ukrainian forces attacked multiple Russian targets earlier on the day.
The report said that a synthetic rubber plant, which was located in the Russian city of Yefremov in the Tula Region and was used to produce components for plastic explosives and key raw materials for solid rocket fuel, was attacked.
It also reported that the Ukrainian forces struck a Russian base for unmanned vessel storage and maintenance in Crimea.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on the same day that Russian forces thwarted a planned sabotage and terrorist attack targeting critical infrastructure in the Tyumen Region.
According to the FSB, the suspect acted on orders from Ukrainian special services and planned an attack on a dispatch station of a major oil pipeline operated by the Russian company Transneft.
The individual attempted to extract components he had bought from a cache to assemble an improvised explosive device earlier on the day. When security personnel tried to capture him, he offered armed resistance and was eventually neutralized, the FSB said.
Also on Wednesday, Ihor Terekhov, mayor of Kharkiv, said that a thermal power plant on the outskirts of the city was attacked by Russian forces on the day, resulting in one death and 13 injuries so far.
Additionally, the attack has directly impacted local heating supply and public transportation operations.
Russia claims controlling new settlement, Ukraine reports striking Russian strategic infrastructure
