Gaokao Traffic & Which Streets to Avoid

Have you noticed something different today? Maybe there’s more traffic, maybe your calls keep failing, maybe it’s quieter in Beijing than ever before. Well, it’s gaokao season!

Gaokao, the national Chinese college entrance exam, is regarded as one of the most rigorous tests in the world. It occurs annually in early June, this year beginning on Wednesday, Jun 7 and ending on Saturday, Jun 10.

Gaokao results determine the caliber of universities students are admitted to, with top colleges being exceptionally difficult to get into. Extreme measures are taken to prevent distractions for the 12.91 million grade 12 students (980,000 more than 2022) taking the exams.

Of those 12.91 million people, 65,000 are here in Beijing. This means that 65,000 people will be moving around the city on similar schedules. Most jobs also function on similar timetables, which contributes to the widely unpopular concept known as the morning rush hour. The exams will only amplify that problem.

As the gaokao begins and ends each day, traffic will be immense. Many candidates live in the suburbs, so fair warning for commuters from Shunyi!

The tests follow regular school time and end around late afternoon, so 9-5 workers in the city will need to be prepared for longer stretches on the road.

There's more to this story! This article was originally published on our sister site, Jingkids International.

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Images: Mikechie Esparagoza, Pixabay, Aauyush Srivistava, Joey Guo