Beijing's Plan to Steer Clear of Traffic Jams

Authorities have released a draft plan to ease the capital's traffic gridlock - including a cap on government cars.

The plan, posted on the municipal commission of transport's website to gauge public opinion, could see Beijing take measures to ease population pressure in the downtown area and speed up construction of traffic infrastructure. It also advocates boosting public transport and strengthening regulations concerning car use.

One of the plan's major points is that Beijing will prohibit new government cars for the next five years, Jia Xinguang, an independent auto analyst, told China Daily.

The capital has around 700,000 government vehicles, nearly 15 percent of the city's car ownership, state broadcaster China Central Television reported.

"Government cars are far more frequently used than private cars, often for personal use. That contributes to congestion," Jia said.

Controlling the number of government cars is welcome but it is more effective to limit their use, he suggested.

Although the plan does not explain how to ease population pressure in central Beijing, the city's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015) suggests that residents should be encouraged to live close to where they work to ease congestion.

Automobile ownership in Beijing stood at 4.7 million, as of December 5, and the city has 6.2 million registered drivers, official figures showed.

"The plan is comprehensive and provides some new ideas to ease traffic pressure, compared to some cities' measures such as merely limiting the granting of car license plates," Jia said.

Before the publication of the draft plan, rumors spread that Beijing will take a leaf out of Shanghai's book and limit the granting of license plates. One particular rumor suggested that anyone without a Beijing permanent residence permit would not be allowed to register a plate.

Shanghai granted 8,500 car license plates in November, with an average price above 45,200 yuan ($6,800) for each plate, the Financial News reported. But Beijing charges just 500 yuan for each plate.

"The exclusion of such strict measures in Beijing's plan shows authorities are very prudent when making policies. They made the plan with an approach to city planning," Jia said.

The city has been choked by several severe traffic jams this year, causing alarm bells to ring for policymakers.

The plan suggests repeating, "when necessary", a measure used during the Olympic Games, when cars were allowed on the road on the basis of odd-and-even license plates during peak hours.

The plan also advocates a congestion-fee charge "at an appropriate time" and preventing car ownership from increasing too fast, though it did not give details.

Chi Yifeng, general manager of Yayuncun Automobile Trade Market in Beijing, and vice-chairman of the China Automobile Dealers Association, said the draft plan shows that the government admitted it was lagging behind in traffic management and infrastructure.

"The promise of building more parking lots at subway stations proves that the authorities have noticed the importance of traffic infrastructure," he said.

Chi said the plan would not dampen people's desire to buy cars.

He said in his market, car sales surged 33 percent in November from the previous month and he predicted a higher rate of increase in December.

"Many dealers and customers have no idea" of just what measures the government might introduce and they are concerned that there could be strict policies down the road, he said.

Xiao Zhe, who is employed by an IT company in Beijing and has decided to buy a car, said he worries that some measures in the plan will change.

"Are all the previous rumors false?" he said.

"I want to know when the government will think it's necessary to limit cars and how they will control car numbers.

"I'm also worried that the government will bring in new plans to limit the granting of license plates," he said.

The draft plan was approved by the State Council and it will be open for public response from December 13 to 19.

To minimize traffic bottlenecks, Beijing now prohibits about 20 percent of cars during weekdays according to the last license plate number.

New parking policy

The municipal government's proposal to ease traffic congestion in beijing

Parking fees

Car parking fees will vary according to location. The cost of parking in the downtown area will be higher than elsewhere in the city. Parking lots on the street level will also be more expensive than in underground facilities.

The city will be categorized into three zones according to their levels of traffic congestion, with higher parking fees in congested areas.

Parking spaces

More than 50,000 parking spaces will be built in downtown Beijing. Garages and multi-story car parks will be erected at major hospitals, including Beijing Hospital and Beijing Tongren Hospital.

An additional 200,000 new parking spaces will become available in old residential communities, predominantly at the instruction of district-level governments. An inquiry will be launched to clear land that has been designated for parking but has been used for other purposes. Private financing is encouraged for building parking lots.

Guidance will be issued to government agencies, enterprises and other organizations, urging them to open car parks for the public.

Local governments will build inexpensive park and ride facilities. In Beijing, more than 30,000 parking spaces will be opened at subway stations located outside the Fourth Ring Road.

Strict fines will be imposed for illegal parking.

Public transportation

More special lanes will be designated for public transport on main roads and those prone to congestion, such as Beijing's Third Ring Road.

By the end of 2011, the construction of special lanes for express buses will be completed in Fushi Road, Beijing.

Nine transportation hubs will be built in Beijing, including the areas of Sihui, Songjiazhuang and Pingguoyuan.

The use of school buses and company shuttle buses is encouraged.

Bicycles encouraged

A bicycle sharing system featuring 1,000 sites equipped with more than 50,000 bikes will be completed during the period of the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015).

A pilot bicycle sharing program will soon be launched, in which more than 200 sites with 10,000 bikes will open to the public at subway stations along lines No 4, No 5 and Batong.

Roads

The city will start to construct tunnels on eastern and western sections of the Second Ring Road in 2011. There will be five fast lanes with an overall length of 37.3 kilometers, due to be completed by the end of 2012.

Two hundred kilometers of new roads will be completed in downtown Beijing by the end of 2012.

Traffic restrictions

Traffic controls according to the last number of a car's license plate - odd or even - will be used on congested roads during rush hours.

Public service broadcasting will encourage people to use public transportation and obey the rules of the road.

The use of modern technology, such as teleconferences, will be promoted for the use of government agencies to help ease traffic congestion.

A plan on easing congestion will be drafted and updated each year. The results will be compiled and compared in testing the performance of governments at city and district levels. -