Beijing unveils new traffic controls

With so many new cars being registered everyday in Beijing, something like this needed to be done.  Maybe other cities in the world that are choked with traffic should consider it, while increasing funding for public transit.

This is actually pretty light traffic for most parts of the day. Usually it's bumper to bumper, with people wandering between the cars.

Dorian in China has contributed a photo to this story.

It is a good idea to enforce stricter traffic law in Beijing considering the level of smog that often blankets the city and is detrimental to its residents' health.

Mongol Nomad has contributed a photo to this story.

This photo was taken while traveling roughly 8 miles in a Beijing taxi in 65 minutes. It was 5:00 PM when we embarked on our journey, but still...

djschwend has contributed a photo to this story.

This was taken at about 7.30 am ... the week after the Paralympics ended. As I was only in Beijing for a short time, I'm not sure how it compares to "normal". I did find, however, that the amount of traffic shot up once the games were over.

emmadukew has contributed a photo to this story.

This isn't an easy road to cross - even if traffic lights are there to assist you.

jhk has contributed a photo to this story.

Just south from the Olympic village, about 2 weeks before the Olympic Games started. At this time people were still allowed to drive on the the reserved "olympic lane".

jrej has contributed a photo to this story.

Photo taken in March 2007 on a clear sunny day whilst on a pedestrian bridge. I was amazed to see the wide roads, the traffic density & discipline in Beijing so I took this photo.

covboy2007 has contributed a photo to this story.

I added the photo of the traffic light that I took out the window of a taxi on my way to the Beijing airport after spending two weeks in China. It summarizes many of my observations from my first visit to China in late 2006, and I view all the elements of the photo as being very symbolic. The construction crane was one of dozens throughout the city highlighting the incredible pace of new construction. The bicycle light underneath the green traffic light emphasizes that automobile traffic is out-pacing more traditional forms of transportation. The green light symbolizes not only the heavy automobile traffic, but China's arrival as a global power and the rapid pace of its economy.

Photo used by permission from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/msauder/327880190/

msauder has contributed a photo to this story.

Stuck in the Beijing gridlock on a bus during the Olympics. I believe this was taken near Chaoyang district.

Kaj17 has contributed a photo to this story.

This was 9pm Beijing time and still riddled with cars on the street. We were @ the cross walk buying things, I mean cutting the price, of trinkets and stuff for family to bring back to Mei Guo. China is a very pro-active country. I hope they can enforce these great thoughts :)

scottywaddy930 has contributed a photo to this story.

View from an elevated walkway. Beijing 2006.

rebeccamedley has contributed a photo to this story.

This was taken in October 2006, from a cab that was stuck in rush hour traffic. Rush hour in Beijing was actually about 2 hours every morning and evening.

gleemickle has contributed a photo to this story.

I spent the fall of 1992 in China, and then didn't go back for 16 years. My expectation as my plane touched down in Beijing in 2006 was that the city would be utterly transformed. I'd certainly found that to be the case in Shanghai--I literally felt that I was returning to a completely different city. Not a thing besides the Bund looked familiar to me there, and I assumed that Beijing would also have taken a great, transformative leap forward. (If "forward" is the right word.)

Beijing, by comparison, seemed strangely stuck in time. There were a few more skyscrapers, and a few less Mao suits. But honestly, the main way I could tell the difference between 1992 and 2006 was by the traffic. In 1992, the only cars on the road were taxis and a few black Buicks with tinted windows that I took to be government vehicles--owning a private car was an impossible dream then. Now there are little VWs and Chevys everywhere, darting around lawlessly and sometimes driving in the bike lanes.

It's a dramatic change and I worry about what the city will be like when Beijing car ownership numbers get closer to ownership rates in the Western world. Like a bumper-car ride in an L.A. brownout, is my guess.

nicole_clausing has contributed a photo to this story.

My picture was taken two years ago- July 2006 to be exact- and that was traffic on the way to Mutianyu outside of Beijing.

To drive in Beijing is to swallow a bomb and give the detonator to a monkey. I'm surprised I didn't see more crashes. Pretty much all the cars, buses, bikes, rickshaws and people in this photo are moving - traffic lights are decorative. In the background in the Pearl Market, which sells fish.

gefafwisp has contributed a photo to this story.

This photo was taken on Chang'an Jie right next to Tiananmen Square. Judging by the banner, it was taken exactly one year ago, the 58th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

zhangbohan has contributed a photo to this story.

Was on a trip to the zoo when taking this foto mainly because of the fog in background.

cgellweiler has contributed a photo to this story.

Taken on a visit one Sunday in May this picture reminds me of the great volume of cars for sure, but also of the generally good standard of driving and the fantastic ability of drivers to keep the traffic on the move. Cars, bikes and pedestrians moved in an almost organic way, somehow never, or very rarely, having to stop and never, in my experience hitting each others. I imagine that there are days when not everything goes so smoothly, however. the best traffic control is the considerate driver behind the wheel in my experience.

photomuncher has contributed a photo to this story.

My photo is from March 2005, returning from Badaling.  The traffic in China is almost choreographed; simply amazing that it flows as it does.  I'm Los Angeleno and can rank the Chinese among the world's best drivers!  We were told the fog-like atmosphere was the result of wildfires nearby; farther south in Beijing I saw patches of blue sky the next day.

Beijing Traffic, April 2007
(c) 2008 Mia Lipman

the_bcb has contributed a photo to this story.

bejing traffic, feb 08

ottonormal has contributed a photo to this story.