A woman was asked to pay 180 yuan after her period stained the bed. Report: The train conductor and crew did not seek compensation from the passenger.

Ask AI · Why did the conductor switch from requesting compensation to proactively helping clean up?

On March 20, @Lanzhou Passenger Transport Division: Recently, regarding the information circulating online—“A woman suddenly starts her period on a train and dirties the berth sheets, and the conductor demands cleaning or compensation of 180 yuan”—our division organized personnel to conduct a thorough review. After checking the video surveillance footage of the train on the day, the back-end data from the ticketing system, and the records of the train’s crew on duty, and after talking with the train’s car chief and conductors who were on duty that day, we comprehensively reconstructed the incident. The relevant details are as follows:

At 21:39 on October 9, 2025, the passenger involved, Ms. Zhang, boarded the K228 train operated by our Lanzhou Passenger Transport Division in Lanzhou, and arrived in Zhengzhou to disembark at 15:06 the next day. On the afternoon of October 10, when the train was running near Gongyi City in Henan Province, while a conductor in car 6 was cleaning the carriage, they saw a female passenger standing in the area near the wash basin. Her pants and clothes had large areas of blood stains. The conductor then asked about the passenger’s condition.

The passenger told the conductor in the carriage that she was in her menstrual period. The conductor found the passenger’s berth number—berth 1 in car 6—using the passenger’s ID provided by her. The passenger was traveling alone without an escort. After checking that berth and finding that both the sheet and the blanket were contaminated with blood, the conductor told the passenger that the contaminated train bedding needed to be cleaned by herself or compensated at 180 yuan based on the pricing for the sheet and comforter. The passenger told the conductor that she had no money to compensate and was willing to clean it herself. Considering that the passenger was in her menstrual period, the conductor used a bucket to collect warm water and assisted her in soaking and washing the contaminated sheets in the bucket. After cleaning, the sheet still had blood stains; the passenger then cleaned it again at the water basin in the wash area.

After the car chief arrived at car 6, they asked about the incident. The passenger stated: After she fell asleep at night on the 9th, she suddenly started her period, which caused the train sheet to be contaminated. The car chief then required other staff to help find sanitary pads. After searching and not finding any, they provided the passenger with tissue paper. Subsequently, the car chief took the initiative to propose that, since the water temperature was low and the passenger was in her menstrual period, the passenger should not wash it, and that the train staff should handle it instead. The passenger insisted on cleaning it herself. The conductor in the carriage proactively took over, using disinfectant powder and a detergent to clean it.

During the process of the conductor taking over to help with the cleaning, the passenger went on her own and sat down on the spare lower berth in car 6. After the conductor finished cleaning and found the passenger, they discovered that the passenger had again contaminated the sheet on that lower berth. The conductor in the carriage cleaned the second contaminated sheet again. During the cleaning, the passenger sat down on the side bench in car 6, and the cushion cover on the bench was also contaminated. After the train arrived at Zhengzhou Station, the passenger got off on her own.

Throughout the entire handling process, neither the car chief nor the conductor charged the passenger any compensation fees, and the Lanzhou Passenger Transport Division also never imposed any penalties such as assessments or accountability investigations in any form on the responsible team.

To demonstrate humanistic care, starting from December 1, 2025, on passenger trains with passenger sales qualifications, our division has already launched a service for the sale of women’s disposable hygiene products. If passengers have a need, they can contact the train staff at any time.

Next, we will continuously optimize our service measures, improve service quality, and strive to provide all passengers with a better travel experience.

Source: @Lanzhou Passenger Transport Division