Snow Stops Street Flow in Beijing

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Saturday, December 08, 2001

Snow Stops Street Flow in Beijing

A Beijing Policeman in Snow

Heavy snow in Beijing Friday may have been a winter wonderland for some, but for many it was a nightmare - with heavy traffic jams and increased accidents.

And going home for the weekend became a tortuous journey of two to six hours for most people.

Although the deluge took the capital by surprise, it could have been predicted, as it occurred on the "heavy snow day" in China's lunar calendar.

Instead of staying at home or snuggling in a warm hotel or bar, many people struggled on the slippery roads to walk a long way back home or to sit inside unmovable taxis and cars.

Heavy Snow in Beijing

"I will go back home, despite the increase in demand for taxis," said taxi driver Zang Yuncheng. "It is too dangerous to drive when it is snowing."

Zang's worry was proved right immediately after his remarks, as two cars crashed beside him at the eastern part of the Third Ring Road.

Sources with Beijing Public Transportation Company said all the company's buses prolonged their operation by six hours last night, and, for that time, most of the buses were jammed in the middle of their routes.

By 9:30 pm, China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Chaoyang District received more than 10 patients injured from falls on the slippery streets, according to Liu Zhaohui with the hospital.

More injured people went to the Jishuitan Hospital in Xicheng District.

"We have received more than 50 people, most of them suffering from fractures," a source with the hospital said at 9:40 pm.

Many people on their way home found the going difficult - either there were few taxis available or the traffic was solid.

Beijing resident Bao Xinyan said it took her three hours by bus to go from Yonghe Lamasery to the University of International Business and Economics, a distance that usually takes the bus less than 30 minutes.

"Cars and buses are queuing all along the way," she said.

A source with the transport management department in Dongcheng District said: "It is always the case - the vehicle flux grows but the speed slows down when it snows."

According to the Beijing Meteorological Observatory, the snow was expected to stop falling last night. But the temperature in Beijing will hover around zero degrees throughout the weekend.

The low is expected to plunge to -7 C.

Snow also fell in the Hetao region of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces and the northern parts of Hebei Province in northern China.