China has world's most congested cities
Updated: 2015-04-07 07:27
By Wang Xiaodong(China Daily USA)
|
|||||||||
Nearly a third of the world's 50 most congested cities are in China, with Beijing ranking 19th, according to a traffic congestion report covering more than 200 cities worldwide.
Taipei is the most congested city in China, ranking 13th on the list.
Chongqing ranks 15th, making it the most congested city on the Chinese mainland, followed by Tianjin (17th) and Beijing, according to the report. Of the top 50 cities with the highest congestion levels, 15 are in China.
The report was released by TomTom, a global leader in navigation and mapping products, with headquarters in Amsterdam. It covered 218 cities in 36 countries and regions. All data, collected last year, was based on GPS measurements from the company's traffic database.
Istanbul in Turkey was the most congested city, with a congestion level of 58 percent, which indicates a 58 percent increase in overall travel times in the city when compared with traffic flowing freely.
The congestion level for Beijing was 37 percent, but during the evening peak it rose to 74 percent. The level for Chongqing was 38 percent.
The report said traffic congestion nearly doubled journey times during evening rush hours, the most congested time of day for most cities.
Traffic congestion has become a serious problem for many cities in China in recent years, spreading from large ones such as Beijing to many second-and third-tier cities.
Chen Yanyan, a professor at the Transportation Research Center at Beijing University of Technology, said, "In recent years, the increase in vehicles has far outpaced the development of transportation infrastructure in many places in China, causing chronic traffic congestion."
There were 126 million private vehicles in China by the end of last year, a year-on-year increase of 15.5 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Thirty-five cities in China each had more than 1 million cars at the end of last year, including 10 that had more than 2 million cars, according to Beijing News.
Some cities facing the worst traffic congestion, including Beijing and Shanghai, have taken strict measures in recent years to discourage people from buying and using cars, such as requiring prospective buyers to obtain licenses through lotteries or auctions.
Chen said large cities need to develop public transportation systems that can handle large passenger volumes, such as subways, to relieve the traffic burden.
"Many cities - such as Tokyo - in developed countries encountered similar problems in the 1960s and 1970s," she said. "These cities have developed public transportation systems, and now most people in them rely on these systems rather than using their cars to commute.
"Subway construction is progressing rapidly in many cities in China, but time is needed for such facilities to be completed and put into use," Chen said.
Authorities also need to make it more expensive to use cars, such as charging congestion and pollution fees, she added.
Liu Fuli, an independent traffic congestion analyst, said improper urban planning, including road planning, is a major cause of traffic congestion in Beijing.
"Authorities should try to upgrade some improperly built roads, which prevent traffic flow. Innovation is needed in the design of roads in newly developed areas, and existing roads need upgrading," he said.
wangxiaodong@chinadaily.com.cn
- China's last Bombardier CRJ200 civil aviation aircraft retires
- Record travel on Tomb Sweeping Day holiday
- Report highlights growing role of new media
- Southeast China's chemical plant fire put out
- Three injured in chemical plant blast in E China
- Visits to Nanjing massacre memorial more than double in Q1
- Flying Tigers commemorated
- First family celebrates White House Easter Egg Roll
- Top 30 world’s most congested cities
- Photos capture streams of smoke
- Collector turns abandoned school into folk museum
- Steeping the leaves
- 2015 Miss Kyrgyz beauty pageant concluded
- Intl Pillow Fight Day celebrated around world
Most Viewed
Editor's Picks
What do we know about AIIB |
Full coverage of Boao Forum for Asia |
Annual legislative and political advisory sessions |
Spring Festival trends reflect a changing China |
Patent applications lead the world |
BC lures Chinese tourists |
Today's Top News
Business, energy vital
in trade trip
China has world's most congested cities
Cause of China chemical plant blast identified
Chinese group backs reversal on injunction
Search for 'super battery' gets charged up
VP Biden to give major speech on Iraq's future
Trade mission seeks opportunity
Snowden sculpture sneaked into New York City park
US Weekly
Geared to go |
The place to be |