Sensible signs, more spaces for central city's parking lots

By Wang Wei (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-22 07:55

The municipal government has promised to accelerate renovation work on parking lots in major commercial areas within the Second Ring Road.

Lu Yan, director of Beijing municipal commission of commerce, said in an interview with Radio Beijing Cooperation on Friday that a lack in spaces and ambiguous parking signage at shopping malls were common headaches for drivers.

"We will begin by renovating the parking signs in underground lots at major shopping malls in Xidan and Wangfujing, to help upgrade Beijing's commercial infrastructure," he said in the radio interview.

Currently, finding a space in Xidan during the rush hour is considered a major achievement.

An employee surnamed Liu with Joy City's parking lot department - the largest underground parking lot serving a shopping mall in Xidan - told METRO that despite having almost 1,000 parking spots, there are usually no available spaces during the winter months.

"In winter, the public flocks to Xidan to stay warm," he said, adding that parking problems result in serious traffic jams.

He said during peak times, it can take a bus 40 minutes to travel 1 km along Xidanbei Street, where three big shopping malls are located.

"Because there is no more parking space left on the street, vehicles form a huge queue that cars can't pass," he said.

Beijing Daily reported on Jan 18 that parking needs had spilled out onto pedestrian areas in Xidan and police officers had written up 20 tickets in only five minutes.

Lu said commission's solutions would include setting up more parking signs, designing a parking guidance system to effectively handle shoppers' needs, and hiring more car parking guides.

(China Daily 03/22/2010 page27)