Beijing spends big on sidewalk, bicycle-lane work

A woman rides a bicycle along a bicycle-lane road in Beijing that has been painted red, Aug 18, 2013. Beijing is spending about 30 million yuan ($4.9 million) this year to improve the capital's sidewalks and bicycle lanes, and keep them free of motor vehicles. [Mao Yanzheng / Asianewsphoto]

Beijing is spending about 30 million yuan ($4.9 million) this year to improve the capital's sidewalks and bicycle lanes, and keep them free of motor vehicles, transportation authorities said.

Yang Fan, an official with the Beijing Committee of Transportation, said on Aug 19 that since mid-July, renovation has been completed on four major roads along the subway's Line 5, with 2,578 meters of sidewalks widened.

Yang said to make it safer and more convenient for people to walk and cycle on the streets, the government has also built 1,812 meters of isolation belts, which prevent cars from encroaching onto the bicycle lines.

The project, which also includes setting up new traffic marks in intersections, will start first within the Third Ring Road before spreading to a larger area of the city, Yang said.