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Around 45 bus stops popped up in the Yaohai district of Hefei, China recently, fooling commuters and bus drivers into thinking they are actual ones. The fake bus stops looked similar to official bus stops around the city, which is why the riding public were unaware of their being illegal.
It is still unknown who built the fake bus stops around the district, but as per Anhui News via South China Mourning Post last July 13, the public transport department believes these were put up by an advertising company.
The bus stops were covered with advertisements, thus giving the authorities the lead that they may have been put up by an ad agency. Some of the advertisements in the fake bus stops also featured an education center, but an employee from the center has since spoken out, saying they believed the center paid for legitimate advertising space.
“We were approached by the advertising agency in the first place. We were actually looking to advertise, so we decided to go with them,” the employee from the center said in the report.
On the other hand, a commuter, identified only as Liu, shared that he had been riding the bus from one of the fake bus stops everyday for quite some time. According to him, he had no idea the bus stop was not real.
Bus drivers, too, were unaware when they picked up passengers from said bus stops, as there was no reason for a commuter not to stand at a bus stop and wait.
Meanwhile, the Urban Management Administration issued a notice last July 10 that it will be demolishing the illegal bus stops if these weren’t removed within three days. Despite the notice, no one came forward to the authorities regarding the fake bus stops. Cody Cepeda/JB
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