Li Hao
A GREENWAY has given Zhang Fukun, 65, the incentive to take up bicycle riding again, a habit he gave up 10 years ago.
Zhang was one of about 100 people who were invited by the urban management bureau to go cycling on the greenway connecting Meilin in Futian District and Xili in Nanshan District yesterday, marking the official opening of a 335-kilometer greenway network in Shenzhen.
The excitement of riding on the greenway overshadowed the chilly weather.
Greenways are a new open space where people can spend their spare time. I will invite my family and friends to go hiking on the greenway for fresh air and exercise, said Zhang, who was the fastest of the cyclists.
Costing 110 million yuan (US$16.58 million), most of the greenways in Shenzhen were built in the natural landscape.
Environmentally friendly facilities have been installed on completed greenways, including solar-and-wind-powered street lamps, dustbins and benches made of recycled material.
Graffiti has been painted on some slopes along the greenway.
For children living in the city, greenways are a good place to go to keep in touch with nature, said Wu Limin, a Shenzhen Municipal People s Congress deputy.
While walking along the greenways, people could also keep an eye on and report illegal buildings, which were scattered throughout the city, Wu said.
While those invited spoke highly of the greenway environment, Wu voiced concern for issues such as security, food and water, and medical assistance on the greenways.
He suggested small electric cars could patrol the greenways to provide drinking water and first aid if it was necessary.
The municipal urban management bureau would invite professional enterprises to bid for the right to manage the greenways.
In addition, emergency call phones and bike rental services would be available on the greenways, the bureau said.
The 335 kilometers of greenways would become part of a provincial greenway network in the Pearl River Delta.
Shenzhen plans to start construction of greenways connecting residential communities this year. (More on Page 11)
