Standardized pushcarts

THE Huashang Newspaper reported that, a city management official in Zhouzhi County of Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, ordered over 20 vendors from a local night market to purchase pushcarts from a designated stainless steel shop. He added that anyone who failed to comply would be out of business. The carts from the designated shop were twice as expensive as their predecessors.

Local management explained that standardized vending carts make the night market tidy and good to look at.

The practice can be questioned. First, there’s no law or regulation stipulating that the city management can interfere with vendors’ choice of equipment, as long as it is safe. The management’s fervor for one-of-a-kind carts smacks strongly of mercenary motivations.

The explanation proffered by the official is also farfetched: How will the uniformity of vending carts be beautiful to look at?

To anyone who has frequented a bustling night market, it is immediately understood that the charm that sets it apart from an upend marketplace lies in its diversity, unpredictability or even a welcome degree of chaos.

Significantly, when the urban management intends to make some changes concerning the local vendors, they are well advised to consult the inclinations of the vendors beforehand.

To say the least, such pushcarts are certainly a burden on small-time vendors struggling to eke out a living.