Beijing to restrict vehicle use during Olympics

Bejing will lessen the number of vehicles running on its streets, banning more than one million vehicles, during the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games in China to reduce both traffic flow and air pollution, Beijing’s Vice Mayor Ji Linsain said on May 31. Liu Xiaoming, vice director of the Beijing Municipal Transportation Committee, said that the ban is expected to reduce the number of vehicles in Beijing by 20%-30% during the games. Ji said they will also stop work on building sites and road construction during this period. The city will also enforce tighter management on trucks, which discharge more pollutants than other vehicles, especially those from other cities. There are currently 2.97 million automobiles in the city and the number of vehicles is expected to exceed 3.3 million by the time the Olympic Games begin in August 2008. (May 31, 2007)