Channel NewsAsia (Beijing) - The phenomenal increase in car ownership in China may have done wonders to spur the country's economy.
But it has also caused pollution, more congested roads and parking woes.
A typical congested scene in Beijing is now made worse by illegal parking where vehicles park in bicycle lanes, even on curbs and pedestrian walkways.
Motorists said they have not got much choice.
"Where else can we find a place to park? It's not as if anybody cares," said motorist Li Xueming.
Another motorist Wu Xiqiang, said: "There's no place to park. One person will have to run the errand, while the other person waits in the car."
Another motorist interviewed said car-park spaces are either all taken up or too expensive.
Officials in this neighbourhood said parking is not a problem, but many people will disagree.
The lack of parking space is a countrywide problem, with infrastructure unable to keep pace with the car population.
China has an estimated 86 million cars, and the race to find a lot has led to some creative solutions.
Some reserve a space using a chair, several chairs, the top bust of a discarded mannequins, an inflated car or even in person.
But the fierce competition can turn tragic.
One man was beaten to death in Luoyang, in Henan province.
In Nanjing, a motorist deliberately drove into a security guard, after being told there was no parking space.
Across the country, authorities are taking steps to ease the problem and this includes restricting car ownership.
Beijing has said it would improve public transport, and limit the number of new car license plates issued this year to 240,000.
In upwardly mobile Beijing, car ownership is a common desire, and a common aspiration. But given a severe shortage of parking space in the Chinese capital, potential car owners may soon have to prove that they have a parking space, before they are allowed to purchase a set of wheels.
Major Chinese cities do not have much room for parking spaces aboveground and analysts said any solution will require significant investment.
And that is little comfort for motorists and other road users, navigating the treacherous roads in countless Chinese cities.
