Beijing to keep green transport after Olympics

Low fares for public transport in Beijing are not a stopgap measure Zhou Zhengyu, deputy director and spokesperson of the Beijing Municipal Committee of Communications, announced Wednesday at a press conference at the Main Press Center in Beijing.

Zhou's statement was in response to a question raised by a reporter from the Peoples Daily who asked Zhou to address Beijing residents concern that the city's low fare public transportation policy was a temporary measure. Deputy director Zhou assured those present that the current fare level in Beijing's metro and bus systems has been implemented as part of Beijing's transport system development strategy and will not expire at the end of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

As to what additional measures should be adopted for the Beijing transportation system's future development, Zhou told reporters: "We encourage Beijing citizens to use public transport as much as possible during the two peak periods on an average working day. And with our policy of giving top priority to public transport, we will place our efforts mainly on developing our light rail and subway systems."

There are currently eight operational subway and light rail lines in Beijing. The Beijing municipal government plans to add additional lines with 561 kilometers of track planned to be operational by 2015.

Beijing aims to improve the capacity and volume of public transport by making the fares more attractive. "Our number one goal in developing the public transport system is to raise the current ratio of people using public transport from 35% to 45%," said Mr. Zhou at the conference.

However, the odd-even license plate restriction policy authorized by the Beijing Municipal Government is a temporary measure. From July 20 to September 20 only one half of Beijing's cars are allowed on the road at any one time. The cars are restricted based on their license plate numbers. In the past 20 days, 1.8-2 million vehicles have been kept off the roads. This has helped reduce daily emissions by at least 20%, contributing to major improvements in the city's air quality.

Zhou found that many people have already been accustomed to the new regulations. These regulations are changing the way Beijing residents live their lives. "Many car owners are now quite used to driving cars one day and taking public transport or riding bicycles the next. Some even walk," Zhou said.

These changes also fit in with the governments green initiative Zhou emphasized: "The government is giving top priority to improving public transport and encouraging people to do more green ways of travel."