Beijing's car limit rolled out on holidays
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Beijing's daily license plate restrictions are to be extended to include bad weather conditions, major events and festivals, the local authority said Tuesday.
Depending on the day of the week, licence plates ending in certain numbers are banned from the roads, a congestion-busting policy that was first applied during the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
As the implementation of the policy, almost half of the cars disappeared from the roads during the Games. However, some residents thought it was unfair to private car owners. Why should the government allow people to buy cars but ban them from driving them?
Professor Zhang Zhuting, a member of a legal consulting committee under the Ministry of Transport, agrees that the policy interferes with the public interest, adding that it will only have a beneficial effect when the city has built a convenient public transport system that can accommodate more people.
To support a better public transport system, professor Zhang said the municipal government should call on citizens to reduce unnecessary outings. For short distances, he said, citizens do not need to drive cars.
Taxi companies could also take phone reservations so empty cabs would not need to drive around looking for passengers. "Still, the improvement of a city's traffic situation would have to rely on its citizens being self-disciplined and well behaved on the roads," he said.
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