Experts look at fallout from urban traffic problems

Beijing (CNS) – Traffic congestion in the world's metropolises is a problem that only promises to get worse. Representatives from Berlin, Hong Kong, Seoul, Singapore, Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai and Los Angeles gathered in Beijing from May 23 to 24 to evaluate solutions and share experiences.

Zhou Ganzhi, an urban planning expert, said China's big cities are now suffering the twin headaches of serious traffic congestion and environmental pollution. Beijing is an example of a third symptom; the super city that is home to more than twenty million people and five million vehicles finds its traffic problems have begun to undermine urban development.

Friedemann Kunst representing Germany's transportation department, said they are expanding the number of bicycle parking spots in big cities, as a way of encouraging people to choose the bicycle over the auto.

Mohinder Singh, dean of a Singapore transportation school, said building more roads is not sustainable from either an economic perspective or an environmental one. He said their government at present is putting its efforts into public transportation and optimizing the capacity of existing roads.