Sustainable Transportation – A Revolution to Reshape Urban Space

China Weekly Issue No. 2, 2019

Heavy traffic, poor air quality, no parking space... As the urban population continues to increase, both urban transportation problems and city dweller’s travel demands have changed.

With the rapid growth of China’s economy, people are constantly pouring into cities to pursue better employment opportunities, find higher-income jobs, and improve their life quality. High-speed urbanization and the accompanying high-speed mechanization have rapidly changed the urban landscape. Dense and low-rise apartment blocks of the past have been transformed into main streets and high rises, and been suburbanized. Suffering traffic jams and environmental pollution, people have to accept longer and longer commutes.

China is now at a critical stage of transition from large-scale urban construction to quality-oriented sustainable urban development. Renewal projects are underway in cities at different levels. Urban Construction should provide local people with high-quality public transportation and communication spaces, and a pleasant living environment. All of these factors have prompted Chinese cities to move toward a people-centered design. Now an increasing number of cities are beginning to develop sustainable traffic design guidelines.