Tram tracks to link city areas

Shanghai plans to build 700 to 800 km of tram tracks to link the city's metro stations to suburban towns. Zhou Huai, deputy director of the Shanghai Transport and Port Authority, told the Shanghai Morning Post that the first tram route will be built in the suburban Songjiang district, connecting Songjiang New Town and Sheshan tourism area. A new type of low-carbon, energy saving tram, made by the China CNR Corp, will possibly be introduced.

Downtown area hit by blackout

A power outage hit a large part of downtown Shanghai on Wednesday night and authorities were investigating the cause and the size of the affected area, eastday.com reported. Residents along North Shaanxi Road, Wanhangdu Road and West Nanjing Road said a blackout hit their areas at about 9 pm. The city's subway operator said on Wednesday night that a power failure resulted in a reduced train speeds on Line 2 between the Zhongshan Park and East Nanjing Road stations.

Beijing

Cancer claims Chen Xitong

Former Beijing Party secretary Chen Xitong died of cancer at the age of 83 on Sunday, Xinhua News Agency reported on Wednesday. Chen was sentenced to 16 years in prison for corruption by Beijing Municipal Higher People's Court on July 31, 1998. He was released on medical parole on May 31, 2006.

Newspapers pay the penalty

Three newspapers have had their publishing licenses revoked or operations suspended due to legal violations. They are Shopping Guidance Weekly, Herald Network and China Special Native Product, according to the State General Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television on Tuesday. Shopping Guidance Weekly lost its license and was ordered to stop publishing in May after its staff became embroiled in a blackmail scandal.

Xinhua - China daily