<p>Both 地铁 and 地下铁 are short for 地下铁路 (under-ground railroad). It can only mean subway, even though some subways have above-ground sections.</p>
<p>Above-ground railroads are simply called 铁路 (no such thing as 地上铁)</p>
<p>The railways that are serving urban areas (same as subways) are typically called 輕铁 (light rail)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-10T21:44:11.337Z
(伦敦)地上铁 is the commonly-accepted Chinese term for the (London) Overground.
Michael Tsang
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-14T05:18:14.050Z
I actually cannot quite believe your answer does refer to actual usage of native speakers in a place like Berlin or Hamburg. These cities have two complementary systems, U-Bahn and S-Bahn, The U standing for Untergrund (underground) and the S for either Schnell (swift) or Stadt (city). In both parts the U-Bahn is predominantly underground while the S-Bahn is overground or elevated (dam or viaduct). Now German users of the system consistently say 'U' and 'S' to refer to the *systems*, not their built features, ...
John Frazer
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-14T05:30:40.017Z
... although Hochbahn is OK where a line is elevated *but only if its the elevated U-Bahn*. Using Hochbahn for the elevated parts of the S-Bahn is wrong and will lead to confusion. I'd expected native speakers here to do the same and when I have occasionally overheard them I heard "物班" and "S班". My guess is that such an informed city dweller would explain others sth like "物班就是地鐵，地下和高架的都有吧，然後S班就是到郊外去的，同樣不管地上地下的" . I do the same when in say Paris (Métro, RER, Transilien) or any place that has a similarly interwoven fabric of many strands: speakers adapt to the local customs.
John Frazer
CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-09T14:10:25.977Z
2022-08-09T14:10:25.977Z
Tang Ho
<p>The names of different railways in Taiwan:</p>
<p>地(下)鐵(underground railway/subway); (地面)鐵路(at grade railroad); 高架鐵(elevated railway); 高鐵(hi-speed railroad); 捷運(inner city shuttle railway). The latter two are often above ground (elevated).</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-08-09T15:36:02.243Z
2022-08-09T15:36:02.243Z
r13
<p>The phrase 地铁 was initially a contraction of the term 地下铁路 (underground railway). However, can it be also taken to mean 地上铁 (overground) in addition to 地下铁 (underground) as well as a collective term for both systems, which serve the same function in urban transport?</p>

<difference>
Can the phrase 地铁 in Chinese taken to mean the Underground (地下铁) and the Overground (地上铁)?
# Can the phrase 地铁 in Chinese taken to mean the Underground (地下铁) and the Overground (地上铁)?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2022-08-09)

The phrase 地铁 was initially a contraction of the term 地下铁路 (underground railway). However, can it be also taken to mean 地上铁 (overground) in addition to 地下铁 (underground) as well as a collective term for both systems, which serve the same function in urban transport?

**Tags:** difference

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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2022-08-09. Score: 1

Both 地铁 and 地下铁 are short for 地下铁路 (under-ground railroad). It can only mean subway, even though some subways have above-ground sections.

Above-ground railroads are simply called 铁路 (no such thing as 地上铁)

The railways that are serving urban areas (same as subways) are typically called 輕铁 (light rail)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: (伦敦)地上铁 is the commonly-accepted Chinese term for the (London) Overground.  
> **username_2**: I actually cannot quite believe your answer does refer to actual usage of native speakers in a place like Berlin or Hamburg. These cities have two complementary systems, U-Bahn and S-Bahn, The U standing for Untergrund (underground) and the S for either Schnell (swift) or Stadt (city). In both parts the U-Bahn is predominantly underground while the S-Bahn is overground or elevated (dam or viaduct). Now German users of the system consistently say 'U' and 'S' to refer to the *systems*, not their built features, ...  
> **username_2**: ... although Hochbahn is OK where a line is elevated *but only if its the elevated U-Bahn*. Using Hochbahn for the elevated parts of the S-Bahn is wrong and will lead to confusion. I'd expected native speakers here to do the same and when I have occasionally overheard them I heard "物班" and "S班". My guess is that such an informed city dweller would explain others sth like "物班就是地鐵，地下和高架的都有吧，然後S班就是到郊外去的，同樣不管地上地下的" . I do the same when in say Paris (Métro, RER, Transilien) or any place that has a similarly interwoven fabric of many strands: speakers adapt to the local customs.  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2022-08-09. Score: 1

The names of different railways in Taiwan:

地(下)鐵(underground railway/subway); (地面)鐵路(at grade railroad); 高架鐵(elevated railway); 高鐵(hi-speed railroad); 捷運(inner city shuttle railway). The latter two are often above ground (elevated).


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