March 21 — A Chinese media outlet recently reported that when purchasing tickets on the 12306 app, users have noticed a pop-up notification stating "Change carriage on the same train, no need to disembark."
As it turns out, 12306 recently rolled out a new "Same Train Transfer" feature. Currently, this service is available on certain trains departing from Beijing West Railway Station.
For instance, there are no direct trains from Beijing Daxing Airport to Shijiazhuang. Previously, passengers had to book two separate tickets and transfer at Beijing West Railway Station.
With the "Same Train Transfer" feature, the 12306 app now offers two "direct" options. According to the system, passengers will board two trains with different numbers, but it will be the same physical train that changes its number at Beijing West Railway Station. Passengers do not need to get off the train.
Additionally, passengers can now pay for both legs of the journey at once, instead of having to manually select and pay for each segment separately.
However, it's worth noting that the 12306 system cannot assign the same seat numbers for both legs of the journey. Passengers may still need to change seats on the train.
