Police urged to ensure orderly, smooth traffic flow after Gansu quake

BEIJING, Dec. 19 (Xinhua) -- Chinese police have been asked to ensure orderly, smooth traffic flow along lifelines needed for disaster relief efforts after a 6.2-magnitude quake jolted northwest China's Gansu Province late on Monday.

An emergency traffic control meeting was held on Tuesday morning. During the meeting, the traffic management branch of the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) urged police across the country to enhance coordination and cooperation and effectively manage the traffic on relevant roads.

A joint work mechanism was launched to ensure smooth traffic around Gansu, with efforts including round-the-clock monitoring of road traffic surrounding affected areas, and an enhanced readiness to deal with potential accidents in this region, said the MPS traffic management bureau.

As of 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday, traffic was normal in the urban areas of Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, while roads leading to Jishishan County, where the epicenter was located, were not blocked. In addition, no obvious damage had been observed in the structures of expressway bridges, tunnels and road surfaces within the region, authorities said.