高鐵要不要覆蓋WiFi應由市場決定
Wang Mengshu, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said at a panel discussion on the sidelines of the annual session of the National People's Congress that WiFi should not be provided on high-speed trains, as it might disturb onboard communication signals and would also cost a lot in maintenance. He also encouraged passengers to enjoy the views, instead of fixing their eyes on the tiny screens of smartphones and laptops. However, on last Tuesday Beijing Youth Daily said it should be market demand that decides whether the WiFi is offered on board trains or not.
全國人大代表、中國工程院院士王夢恕在全國人民代表大會某代表團的分組審議中表示，高鐵上面不應該覆蓋WiFi信號，因爲WiFi可能會影響機車通信信號，並且後期維護成本也高。他還鼓勵乘客多享受鐵路兩旁的風景，而不是盯着智能手機或平板電腦的小屏幕看。不過，根據上週二北京青年報報道，高鐵覆不覆蓋WiFi應當由市場需求來決定。An increasing number of residents, especially young white collar workers, are addicted to their smartphones rather than face-to-face interactions, thanks to the extensive WiFi coverage across the country. That partly justifies Wang's opposition to the offering of WiFi on high-speed trains, because they are not supposed to be dependent on high-tech gadgets. It is also evident that passengers on trains without free WiFi will use their smartphones and other mobile devices less.
得益於全國廣泛覆蓋的WiFi信號，越來越多的人們，特別是年輕白領沉迷於智能手機，而不喜歡面對面的交流。這也在一方面證明了王院士反對高鐵覆蓋WiFi是有道理的，因爲人們不應當活在高科技數碼產品的虛擬世界裏。同時也表明，如果高鐵上沒有免費WiFi，乘客使用他們的智能手機或者其他移動設備上網的機率就會小一些。
However, whether the trains should provide a free WiFi service fundamentally depends on customer demand.
然而，高鐵上到底應不應該提供免費WiFi服務，說到底是由用戶需求來決定的。
In other words, State-owned as it is, the China Railway Corp still has to abide by relevant market rules, and provide technologically feasible services to passengers if that is what they want. It cannot turn a blind eye to customers' wants "for the sake of their well-being".
換句話說，即便是國企，中國鐵路總公司仍然得考慮遵守市場規律，如果乘客有需求，就得爲乘客提供可行的技術支持。用戶要追求更好的服務享受，該公司就不能對此視若無睹。Free WiFi, in fact, is already available on a slew of buses and coaches. This is a natural response to their competition with trains (especially high-speed ones), which are significantly faster and safer. The bus companies have been compelled to improve their services to survive.
事實上，很多公共汽車和長途汽車上已經提供了免費WiFi，這是面對速度與安全性都有顯著提高的火車（特別是高鐵）帶來的競爭所做出的正常回應。公交客車公司被迫改善服務以求生存。It requires properly tailored guidance, not a total ban on the use, to offset the negative effects of high-end technologies, such as people's increasing addiction to smartphones.
免費WiFi的使用需要適當的引導，而不是完全禁止，以此來消除高端技術所帶來的負面影響，比如人們對智能手機越來越依賴。
