Travelers in Beijing subway “pay” with plastic bottles
Beijing's subway authorities have introduced reverse vending machines which allow travelers to offset their transit costs by recycling. Passengers insert a plastic bottle, wait twenty seconds until the bottle is crushed to a third of its original size. Donors then receive one jiao (1.6 cents) on their commuter passes for each empty bottle. The machines have been installed in two stations Jinsong and Shaoyaoju.
Recycling for a reward. The manufacturer of the machines, Incom says it's easy.
The machine here will be competing against the subway's numerous scavengers and underground collection centers, which actually turns recyclable material into waste, and produce more pollution.
The company is confident that being a green campaigner will help them win. The machine is still in a trial stage. The company plans to install 3, 000 such machines across the city. They'll expand to other subway lines, schools, residential areas, bus stops and shopping malls.
Similar machines will soon be installed in bus stops as well.
