Drivers hate congestion fee, others don't

According to statistics from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, 10.78 million cars were sold in China in the first six months of this year, a year-on-year increase of 12.3 percent.

"Neither the purchase restrictions nor the levying of congestion fees will fundamentally change the traffic situation in cities," said Zhao Hang, head of the China Automobile Technology & Research Center, noting those measures may thwart the automobile industry's development.

A stricter tightening over the use of vehicles in cities will inevitably discourage people from car purchase, thus further damaging the interests of automakers.

Zhao held that efforts should be made in exploring new management methods, such as adopting staggered office hours and building more parking lots to reduce the number of parked cars along roads, which often cause congestion.

According to the China Youth Daily's poll, most respondents blame unreasonable city planning as the primary cause of congestion, while 80.5 percent of the surveyed expect an improved public transportation system to relieve traffic jams.

Guo Xiaobei, who is in charge of the Institute of Comprehensive Transportation under the National Development and Reform Commission, placed high hopes on the city's rail transit system.

In Guo's eyes, the rails will play a great role in China's future urbanization as they are fast and have a larger carrying capacity.

He said the insufficiency of public transportation facilities is the root of traffic congestion. "Cars cannot be everything, especially for cities with tens of millions of people."

Last year, public transportation accounted for about 44 percent of all trips in Beijing, and about 50 percent of trips in Shanghai.

Guo suggested a diversified rail transit system combining metro lines, light rail and tramcars, which Beijing has so far struggled to build.