Filed under: Legislation and Policy, Green Daily, China
Beijing finally cutting down on traffic to reduce pollution during Olympics
There had been some speculation about Beijing's plans to force traffic restrictions in order to reduce the city's pollution for the Summer Olympic Games. At first, traffic restrictions were proposed but they were axed, then proposed again. We also saw some other creative measures to control pollution with limited resources and available time.Nevertheless, this time it seems that restrictions are for real:
First, from July 20 to September 20, vehicles registered in Beijing with license plates ending in an odd number will only be allowed on the roads every other day. So, on days when odd numbered license plates will be allowed, vehicles with license plates ending in an even number will be banned. Taxis, ambulances, postal delivery, and other public vehicles will be exempt.
Second, Beijing's public workers have been instructed to leave their cars at home and use nothing but mass transit until the Olympic games have ended. According to the European Space Agency, the Chinese capital and neighboring provinces have the world's highest levels of NOx.
[Source: Chinacartimes]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joseph 8:00PM (6/26/2008)
Wouldn't it have been better to less imposing regulations a year before, instead of just a couple months before, the games? (this is a rhetorical question)
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ed 6:09AM (6/27/2008)
Hmmm.
Total nonsense. Just because China bans some cars isn't going to reduce the pollution. The same, or *more*, number of people will have to get around somehow so the result of these exemptions will be increased corruption and a lot more taxis.
Net result will probably be even more pollution.
Personally I plan to watch the Olympics on tv. This way I can enjoy watching highly trained athletes cough up a lung.
Every member of the IOC deserves prison time.
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Phil L. 10:06AM (6/27/2008)
Don't mind me - I'm just waiting for the upcoming post about massive license plate theft in China, and stories of other ingenious methods to thwart regulations. Plus details of pollution peaks during the Olympics, with shrill condemnation that they should have seen it coming...
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Writing From Beijing 4:49PM (6/28/2008)
Now for a comment from an expatriate actually living in beautiful Beijing, China.
1. There are only mild penalties if you drive your car on the wrong day. Most young and more well-off people will ignore the penalties and incentives and just drive. What they should do is just get rid of all trucks, but then supplies on shelves in the city would run bare.
2. Many people in Beijing already just take their license plates off their cars because there are too many cameras to limit speeding. If they get pulled over they just show their vehicle registration (which includes a picture of the car) and tell the cop their plates were stolen. This will likely just increase the number of cars driving without plates.
3. There are millions of cars on the roads in Beijing. There are not enough cops to enforce this rule. Not even close.
4. The IOC is not at fault here. The inspections of Beijing as a site for the Olympics were made back in 2000. Back then Beijing did not have that many cars. That was before the major auto boom China has experienced which will put it building over 10 Million cars this year.
5. Just as a foot note, Electric Vehicles are illegal in China. The Chinese government is still trying to figure out how to license them. And while Chinese make them for export, they are not available for sale domestically in China. The law on electric bicycles is also unclear, but people buy them and ride them questionably illegally anyway.
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