China Initiates First Car-Free Day in Chengdu
Local streets have significantly less automobiles on them but are more crowded with bicycles and pedestrians, after China's first initiative aimed at encouraging people to leave their cars at home and use pollution-free traffic vehicles. The local government set a total of 14 square kilometers of area where most of the automobiles, except shuttle buses, bicycles and vehicles for emergency situations, are restricted. Wang Rongxuan, mayor of Chengdu, also rode on a bicycle to work today, although he is accustomed to taking his Audi sedan. "I practiced for a while beforehand and found that I can still manage to handle it," said Wang. His words aroused a laugh among people and some reporters around him. "It is more comfortable to ride a bike than take the car," Wang told his secretary while riding to the local traffic control bureau. There are about 650,000 motor vehicles in Chengdu, but today there are only 20,000 on the road, Li Zhaolin, director general of the bureau, reported to the mayor. Some 2,000 elderly people also organized a bicycle trip along the city's Funan River to draw attention to protecting the environment. "Our environment will become cleaner if everyone contributes," said Xiang Changzhu, a member of the team. In the Tianfu Square, one of the most busiest places in Chengdu, the air pollution index was recorded at between 30 and 40, but usually the figure will reach 80, according to an environment supervisor who was working there. | |
| People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/ |
