With a few months to go until the Olympics, Beijing residents are making progress with their etiquette, as indicated by a "city index".

A survey released by Renmin University found that in 2007, 2.54 percent of people still spat in public, down by 2.36 percentage points from 2006.

Over the past three years, the poll surveyed more than 10,000 local residents and 1,000 foreigners who had lived in Beijing for more than two years. It also gathered 3,000-hour observations from 300,000 people at 320 public venues and 200,000 automobiles.

The survey found that the occurrence of littering in public had dropped from 5.3 percent in 2006 to 2.86 percent in 2007 and queue-jumping dropped from 6 percent to 1.5 percent.

The "civic index" of Beijingers, calculated using several parameters, was 73.38 in 2007, up from 65.21 and 69.06 in 2005 and 2006, respectively. The index reflects compliance with rules involving public health and public order, attitudes towards strangers, etiquette at sports events and a willingness to contribute to the Olympic Games.

However, the "civic index" still fell short of the standard required for the 2008 Olympics, according to Sha Lianxiang, a sociology professor at Renmin University. The standard is said to be 80 points.

Beijing expects to receive 550,000 foreign tourists during the Olympics and an estimated 2 million domestic tourists will also visit.

The city has also issued 2.8 million pamphlets about daily etiquette to local households and offered courses to all civil servants and 870,000 people working in the service sector, such as cab drivers, waiters and waitresses, and bus conductors.

"Sentences like 'No means no, it doesn't need an explanation' and 'We can't help you. Go ask someone else' are strictly prohibited," said a cab driver.

The 11th of each month is officially considered as "Queuing Day" as passengers are told to stand in line while waiting for buses.

Meanwhile, people caught spitting in public face fines up to 50 yuan (6.85 U.S. dollars). Rude manners when watching sports competitions may incur a detention.

(Xinhua News Agency February 8, 2008)