OLYMPICS/ Facelift
Beiijing tests air quality for Olympics
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-08-17 17:01
BEIJING, August 17 -- Beijing began a four-day experiment early on Friday to test whether pulling 1.3 million cars off roads daily would be of effect in enormously bringing down air pollution.
Experience obtained herein will in turn shed light on adoption of measures to guarantee environmental quality at the Olympic Games held in the Chinese capital next year, according to Du Shaozhong, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Environmental Protection Bureau.
In accordance with an action plan for the four-day test, from 6 a.m. to midnight on Friday, car drivers with even-numbered license plates face fines if they take to the city road.
In the meantime, odd-numbered cars will be banned on Saturday and Monday, while vehicles with even-numbered registrations must stay off the roads on Sunday.
The test seemed to produce initial positive results.
There were fewer motor vehicles in the city during rush hours on Friday morning, and office workers who rode in shuttle buses on the day arrived in offices much earlier than usual.
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