Subway operator offers settlement in injury lawsuit

Shanghai's subway operator offered Wednesday to settle a lawsuit brought by a passenger who broke her knee getting off a train in February.

Shanghai Shentong Metro Group said in Zhabei District People's Court that it was willing to pay the woman 30 percent of the roughly 620,000 yuan ($98,400) in compensation she was demanding from the company.

The plaintiff, surnamed Zhu, said she would consider the offer.

Zhu suffered the injury while riding metro Line 8 home from People's Square during rush hour on February 3. The train was so packed that Zhu found herself pressed against the door.

When the train stopped at Zhongxing Road Station, the flood of departing passengers pushed Zhu out of the train. As she stumbled out, her leg got caught in the gap between the train and platform, breaking her right knee.

She spent six months at home recovering from the injury.

Zhu sued the company because of the size of the gap between the platform and the train.

During the hearing, Shanghai Shentong said it has done everything it can to prevent such accidents.

The company pointed out that there are warning signs posted inside the train and on the platform. The audio recording on the train that announces each stop also reminds passengers to mind the gap.

Zhu acknowledged that she noticed the warning signs on the train, but added that she didn't anticipate she would be pushed out of the car and didn't expect that her foot could fit in the gap.

She demanded the compensation to cover her medical expenses and recover the money she lost from missing work.