Stupid Beijing Edict

This is a nice little eco-story, but no where in the article does it explain what people will use as an alternative to private automobiles. At rush hour, public transportation is beyond strained. People look like cabbage patch dolls with their faces pressed up against the bus windows. Getting trampled is a bloodsport on the subway in the morning and taxis are not abundant.

The good thing about living in Shanghai is that they don't pull this crap on you.

September 22, 2007 will be the first “vehicleless day” in China, and 108 cities have promised to take part in the campaign, when most of the citizens in those cities will be encouraged to travel by public transport, bicycles or on foot.

On the “vehicleless day”, in Beijing, a major initiator, private cars will not be allowed to run on the roads from Tianqiao to Zhushikou and those from Wangfujing to Bamiancao. The situation in other participating cities will be similar, where certain districts will be designated as vehicleless zones.

According to the statistics from the Ministry of Construction, there are 577 million urbanites and 53 million vehicles in China. The number of private cars is increasing at an annual rate of 20%. Transportation takes up 20% of the total energy consumption of the country.

“A ‘vehicleless day’ will save 33 million litres of petrol and cut the emission of 3,000 tons of waste gas, not to mention that hundreds of lives will be saved from traffic accidents. I, personally, wish that more than 50% of Chinese will choose public transportation in the future, instead of the current 20%,” said Qiu Baoxing, Vice Minister of Construction.

You can wish all you want, but until you build the infrastructure to support the public transportation, it isn't going to happen. I wish these pronouncements would come with an objective. Will it be announced at an unveiling ceremony at the end of the day? How do we judge if it is a success or failure?