How to Save China’s Capital?

via the Next American City blog:



How to Save China’s Capital?
Heshuang Zeng | The City Fix




This piece originally ran on The City Fix.


In February 2012, the number of cars in Beijing exceeded 5 million. Given the problematic levels of traffic congestion and air pollution in the Chinese capital, few people hailed the milestone as an “achievement.” Car ownership rose to this level 11 months later than originally predicted, thanks to a city policy that issues license plates based on a monthly lottery system.

Traffic conditions in Beijing have been sending residents constant surprises by becoming even worse than thought to be the worst. According to IBM’s Commuter Pain Study, Beijing topped the list for the most painful commute in the world. Frequent gridlocks are turning Beijing’s modern ring roads into a vast open parking garage. The average time Beijing-ers spend on commuting is 43 minutes—the longest among Chinese cities.

Accompanying the pain of commuting is the pain of breathing polluted air, which anyone living in the city cannot avoid. Last year, high readings of PM 2.5 (particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter that causes respiratory and cardiovascular diseases) by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing created great public unease and serious health concerns. Beijing—the power center of China—was sadly referred to as being “unlivable,” with PM 2.5 levels sometimes six times higher than the daily limit recommended by the World Health Organization.

The Beijing government is—or at least seems to be—taking progressive actions to address congestion and air pollution. At the institutional level, the Beijing municipal government lists curbing fine particle pollution as its top priority for 2012, ahead of housing, health and education. Facing great public pressure, the government began measuring PM 2.5 on January 21, right before the Chinese New Year (previously, there were only readings from the U.S. Embassy.) The city vows to slash PM 2.5 pollution by nearly 30 percent by 2020. ..................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://americancity.org/buzz/entry/3458/