Transportation News: Catching Up on Beijing's Commute

Lauren McCarthy | Sep 8, 2011 10:00 am | 8 comments | 3508 reads

Overstuffed subway cars, airport security, traffic jams … Beijing's transportation issues are a constant headache for anyone who wants to get from Point A to Point B. And the rules keep changing. Regardless of your preferred mode of transport, chances are good that there’s been recent news or regulations that are affecting you.

The recent tightening of security at Beijing Capital Airport frazzled nerves when it was implemented suddenly last week. While the new regulations (removing shoes and belts; more luggage being hand-checked) were old news for international travelers, domestic passengers were caught off-guard. Tempers flared, voices were raised, fights broke out, flights were missed. The tighter checks were said to be temporary, but it’s worth noting that we should probably prepare for delays whenever there’s (domestic) reason for China officials to worry.

Back out on the roads: Beijing’s latest five-year plan mentions charging congestion fees for cars in high-volume areas of the city. There are no reports yet of what areas would be affected, or how high the fees would be. Several cities have successfully implementing congestion charges, with London traffic dropping by a third when the fees were introduced.

The five-year plan also aims to get people driving more energy-efficient or alternative-energy cars. (Does this electric cars would be exempt from the new congestion fees?) At the moment, electric cars are already exempt from the license plate lottery, so anyone who really needs a car can stop complaining and spring for a compact electric instead of that gas-guzzling SUV they’ve had their eye on. While you’re at it, you’d also be receiving a stipend towards the purchase of the car.

There’s a lot going on underneath the roads as well. The Batong Line has implemented a warning system of sorts, i.e. a way to find out how crowded the subway is before you commit to taking it. Officials will track the throngs during the morning rush hour; once levels reach the “crowded” stage, signs will be posted at station entrances to alert potential passengers that they should consider taking alternate means of transportation or postponing their trip if possible. Passengers informed media that neither of those would happen.

So the subway continues to expands to handle the massive number of Beijingers who rely on public transportation. There are reports that Line 13 will add two new subway stations at Tsinghua Donglu (Tsinghua East Road) station and Jiancaichengdong station. Construction on both stations should begin in December.

And if you’re fed up with vehicles of all kinds and think that walking will alleviate all your transportation hassles, think again. New teams of traffic monitors are now patrolling Beijing's major intersections in a bid to ensure cyclists and pedestrians obey the traffic lights. Because everybody knows that unruly pedestrians are the biggest problem on Beijing roads.

Photos: Wikipedia

Comments

New comments are displayed first.

Comments

admin's picture admin Submitted by Guest on Fri, 09/09/2011 - 05:08

jameserrington wrote:
I've seen the "traffic monitors" at the Guomao intersection, holding up bits of tape to stop people crossing the road on a red light, even when there aren't any cars coming. Meanwhile the drivers speed through, paying little or no attention to whether the lights are red or green, and never, ever giving way to pedestrians with theoretical right of way. The bus drivers seem to be actively trying to run people over. The junction has about ten tunnels (mainly in the subway station) and about four bridges, but you can't use any of these to cross the road in most cases.

brilliant! my sentiments exactly

Books by current and former Beijinger staffers

http://astore.amazon.com/truerunmedia-20

EnduranceAthlete's picture EnduranceAthlete Submitted by Guest on Thu, 09/08/2011 - 20:46

I don't really understand the traffic monitors unless they're going to enforce the traffic rules and pay attention. Today I saw people walk right around the ropes. I followed suit at one intersection and walked around the rope - when I noticed that the monitor was too busy on his mobile phone to notice the light had changed and I was going to miss my opportunity to cross. I think they'd better spend more time on doing something useful like suburban development and keep working on those subway stops.

jameserrington's picture jameserrington Submitted by Guest on Thu, 09/08/2011 - 15:21

I've seen the "traffic monitors" at the Guomao intersection, holding up bits of tape to stop people crossing the road on a red light, even when there aren't any cars coming. Meanwhile the drivers speed through, paying little or no attention to whether the lights are red or green, and never, ever giving way to pedestrians with theoretical right of way. The bus drivers seem to be actively trying to run people over. The junction has about ten tunnels (mainly in the subway station) and about four bridges, but you can't use any of these to cross the road in most cases.

Validate your mobile phone number to post comments.