China's national traffic safety authority said in a statement Wednesday that it was especially important to ensure traffic safety as the Shanghai World Expo concludes.

Local traffic administrative agencies in Shanghai and seven other provinces around Shanghai, namely Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, Jiangxi, Shandong and Henan, should diligently implement traffic security measures throughout the Expo, especially during its closing ceremony on Oct. 31, said the statement released after a work conference held by the traffic management bureau of the Ministry of Public Security.

Local authorities in the eight regions should establish a traffic safety cooperative work mechanism in China's eastern regions after the Expo, the statement said.

The statement also called for the authorities to intensify traffic management work in the fourth quarter this year to avoid serious traffic accidents.