Wall Street Journal (July 27)
“Saturday’s tragic train crash near Wenzhou, in the coastal province of Zhejiang, raises important questions about the Chinese government’s ability to ensure basic safety standards.” The Journal points to the difficulty top-down Chinese institutions have in developing and supervising complex systems. “Like a multinational corporation with a long supply chain, a high-speed rail network depends on individuals at multiple levels of command taking responsibility for effective local operations. China’s predilection for top-down organization makes it difficult for information to flow horizontally and for subordinates to take the initiative to make improvements.”
Tags: China, Government, High-Speed Rail, Safety, Top-down