More than half the government cars in Beijing will be banned
from streets between November 1 and 6 to ensure traffic flows
smoothly during the four-day China-Africa Cooperation Forum
summit.
Schedules for work units, schools and department stores will
also be adjusted to avoid flooding the roads, authorities said
yesterday in a televised conference.
Addressing the importance of road safety during the summit, the
traffic watchdog said that African leaders would be staying in
several hotels throughout the city, and may need to commute long
distances to attend activities.
Specifically, the plan stipulates that half of all vehicles
owned by work units of State and Party institutions, or to military
forces and their affiliated enterprises, will be banned from the
streets during those six days.
80 per cent of government vehicles will also be banned from
every suburb and county in Beijing Municipality, and from the
Beijing offices of every other province and municipality.
For privately-owned and company cars, drivers are recommended to
avoid major routes likely to be used by foreign guests during the
summit. Those routes include Chang'an Avenue, the east and west
second ring roads, and the airport expressway.
Taxis without passengers are strictly banned from entering
Chang'an Avenue, the east and west Second Ring Roads, Sanlihe
Street, the roads to the east and west of Tian'anmen Square, and
the road to the west of the Great Hall of the People.
All drivers are also encouraged to avoid the main airport
expressway, and instead are urged to use the northern road that
also links the airport to the city.
(China Daily October 26, 2006)
