Beijing Urban News - CBD Expansion & Electric Bike Licenses

There have been several interesting stories doing the rounds recently about Beijing’s ongoing urban development, including plans for expansion of the CBD, a new “media hub” and a crackdown on cyclists.

Back in late October, it was announced that the Chicago and China offices of architectural firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill (SOM) had won an international design competition to expand Beijing's Central Business District (CBD). The plans are a little vague on where the expansion will take place, but according to the People’s Daily, the “3-sq km expansion” will be “from the East Third Ring Road near Guomao to the Fourth Ring Road near Sihui Bridge.”

The SOM website states: “The SOM plan calls for the establishment of three new districts anchored by signature parks and green boulevards. New modes of public transportation are proposed, including express commuter rail service between Beijing Capital International Airport, the CBD, and high speed rail service at Beijing South Station. A new streetcar system is proposed to conveniently link all areas of the CBD. A network of small, walkable blocks is proposed to establish a pedestrian-friendly scale for development and every street would be bicycle friendly.”

You can see images of the proposal here. For a more cynical take on the design competition and the relocation of “10,000 households in one of city's most densely populated residential areas," see here.

More recently China Daily reported the “Chaoyang district of Beijing city is developing a media hub in the CBD-Dingfuzhuang area in a bid to form a central place for domestic and international media-related businesses.” According to the same report, the Dingfuzhuang era, situated way over in the city’s east, is already home to “10,000 media companies.” We’re not sure if that includes street-side newspaper stands.

Finally, China Daily reported last week, “A national motorbike association has filed a proposal to the State Standardization Administration to regulate the country's 120 million electric-powered bicycles from Jan 1…the proposal aims to categorize electric-powered bicycles that can exceed 20 km per hour in the same group as conventional motorbikes, with rules such as training, tests and insurance…According to the proposal, cyclists will have to pass driving tests to obtain their licenses and buy expensive insurance packages before hitting the road.”

While electric bikes silently gliding through the streets at relatively high speeds are something of a safety hazard, surely making bells mandatory and educating riders to use them would be better than insisting on licenses, which wouldn’t necessarily improve on-road behavior and will put electric bikes out of the reach of many lower-income residents. The proposal’s source is also a little suspect. An electric bike salesman quoted in the article claims it was drawn up by motorbike manufacturers “wanting to regain market.”

In the more immediate term, ordinary pushbikes appear to be in the authorities’ sites, with China Daily reporting last week: “The Beijing traffic management bureau announced they would establish a special taskforce to oversee traffic violations of people who ride bikes… The news came in the wake of a series of serious traffic violations by cyclists that have led to chaos on the road.”

Mmm… Cars move faster, take up more space, are frequently driven in an aggressive manner by individuals flagrantly ignoring road laws, and they belch pollution. And it’s cyclists causing chaos on the roads?