Domestic Affairs

Biking good to reduce gas emission

By Chen Xuefei (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2011-05-17 17:15

China used to be a real bicycle kingdom. Many foreigners, especially those from Nordic countries were impressed when they visited Beijing or Shanghai in the 1980s and 1990s. So they went back with a lesson from China and began to encourage themselves to ride a bicycle more than driving a car.

When many Chinese went abroad and saw foreign people drive cars, they also dreamed of having a car and now many Chinese drive cars in the crowded street.

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The cars not only caused air pollution in the cities, they also seriously invaded the road that used to belong to bicycles in Beijing. Now the bicycle riders must compete with cars, public buses and passengers and that is very dangerous.

To solve this problem, one must first realize that this is a problem! Everybody knows that to ride a bicycle will produce zero emission, it occupies a small space and it is good for one's health.

But when people feel it is not safe to ride a bicycle, the special road for bicycles is squeezed and one can breathe poisonous emissions from cars, they will not like to ride bicycle any more.

However, to let more people ride a bicycle is a good thing!

It does only good to people and environment and nothing of it is bad. Thus the government should encourage people to ride a bicycle. How?

First, there is no need to completely introduce the foreign way of managing bicycles. The reason is that it is for the purpose of saving labor and it has the support of advertisement beside the bicycle stand.

In China, especially in Beijing there has been private bike renting service, the local government should support them and allow them to make some advertisement so that they can make profit and continue the service of providing bike renting.

Beijing is a large city, it needs comprehensive service, thus, with co-existence of both private and public service, it will be much better for the people.