Trucks plus roadworks equals Beijing bottleneck
By Li Xinran |
August 23, 2010, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
HEAVY trucks in a 100 kilometer queue on a stretch of road in northern China have been disrupting traffic heading to Beijing from the country's west over the past eight days.
The massive bottleneck at the east end of the major Beijing-Tibet Expressway is the result of roadworks in the capital.
Thousands of vehicles have been at a virtual standstill on the section between Beijing and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Traffic on a stretch of the highway in Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia all but stopped at around 9am on Saturday, apparently due to a glut of trucks, Xinhua news agency said.
Most were carrying coal and heading toward Beijing. Drivers left their cabs to sit on the ground playing chess or cards.
Vendors and local residents set up temporary stalls selling food and water at higher prices than the market. A cup of hot water or an egg cost 2 yuan (US$0.29) while instant noodles cost 10 yuan, two or three times higher than the shop price.
Some local residents have been making a small fortune with each driver spending an average of 50 yuan a day for food, a newspaper based in Hebei Province reported.
The 3,710-kilometer expressway runs between Beijing and Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region, via Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Gansu and Qinghai provinces.
The mega traffic jam is mainly the result of the limits imposed on trucks entering Beijing. All trucks traveling to the capital via the expressway have to take the No. 110 National Highway but its Yanqing section is being renovated because of damage caused by heavy traffic.
Trucks from Shanxi Province, Inner Mongolia and Hebei caused a bottleneck at Dayushu in Yanqing, Beijing traffic police said.
The roadworks are likely to be completed by the end of September, said a police officer in Hebei's Zhangjiakou City.
Traffic jams have been frequent since May due to the rapid increase of trucks to a daily peak of about 17,000.
Officers from Inner Mongolia, Hebei and Beijing have been on duty day and night at the scene.
Most vehicles have been not allowed access to the Hebei section of the expressway but those trucks which are carrying fresh agricultural produce to Beijing have been let through to ensure supplies to the capital.
The No. 110 highway has become a one-way single lane to Beijing between 10pm and 4am to try to improve the traffic flow.
The massive bottleneck at the east end of the major Beijing-Tibet Expressway is the result of roadworks in the capital.
Thousands of vehicles have been at a virtual standstill on the section between Beijing and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Traffic on a stretch of the highway in Ulanqab in Inner Mongolia all but stopped at around 9am on Saturday, apparently due to a glut of trucks, Xinhua news agency said.
Most were carrying coal and heading toward Beijing. Drivers left their cabs to sit on the ground playing chess or cards.
Vendors and local residents set up temporary stalls selling food and water at higher prices than the market. A cup of hot water or an egg cost 2 yuan (US$0.29) while instant noodles cost 10 yuan, two or three times higher than the shop price.
Some local residents have been making a small fortune with each driver spending an average of 50 yuan a day for food, a newspaper based in Hebei Province reported.
The 3,710-kilometer expressway runs between Beijing and Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region, via Hebei, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Gansu and Qinghai provinces.
The mega traffic jam is mainly the result of the limits imposed on trucks entering Beijing. All trucks traveling to the capital via the expressway have to take the No. 110 National Highway but its Yanqing section is being renovated because of damage caused by heavy traffic.
Trucks from Shanxi Province, Inner Mongolia and Hebei caused a bottleneck at Dayushu in Yanqing, Beijing traffic police said.
The roadworks are likely to be completed by the end of September, said a police officer in Hebei's Zhangjiakou City.
Traffic jams have been frequent since May due to the rapid increase of trucks to a daily peak of about 17,000.
Officers from Inner Mongolia, Hebei and Beijing have been on duty day and night at the scene.
Most vehicles have been not allowed access to the Hebei section of the expressway but those trucks which are carrying fresh agricultural produce to Beijing have been let through to ensure supplies to the capital.
The No. 110 highway has become a one-way single lane to Beijing between 10pm and 4am to try to improve the traffic flow.
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