Put A Ring On It: Beijing to Build Seventh Ring Road

Beijing is set to get even sprawlier with the announcement of plans to construct a Seventh Ring Road that is slated to open in 2015. According to the China Daily:

"The 940-kilometer highway is expected to open in 2015. Beijing would only cover 90 kilometers, linking the city’s distant districts, and the rest will extend into Hebei province. It will be connected to many existing highways, including the Beijing-Shenyang Line and Daqing-Guangzhou Line."

Bill Bishop points out in the Sinocism newsletter that the new ring road underscores the increasing number of "Sleeping Satellites" (or "Bedroom Communities" as he terms it) – small towns ringing Beijing (mostly in Hebei Province) filled with people who have been squeezed out of the city center due to spiraling cost of living and are forced to commute long distances to work in Beijing – consider that next time you complain about your daily commute.

Photo: caijing.com