Published by the FHWA.
Road Safety Fact Sheet
Safety: A FHWA Vital Few - Fact Sheet
How Safe is America's Roadway System?
The U.S. roadway system's positive trends have plateaued at a fatality rate that is the lowest in history at 1.5 deaths per 100 million miles of travel (down from 5.5 fatalities in 1966). However, that's still not good enough. In 2003, almost 3 million people were injured and 42,643 people died on our nation's roads. The number of annual roadway fatalities had remained virtually unchanged (40,000-42,000) for the past ten years, but now there is an upward trend.
How Significant is the Roadway Safety Problem?
Roadway safety is a serious, national public health issue. In 2003, there were 42,643 fatalities and almost 3 million injuries occurred on our nation's roads.
Out of the total 42,643 fatalities in 2003, there were:
25,321 road departure fatalities (59%)
9,213 intersection fatalities (21%)
4,749 pedestrian fatalities (11%)
Can You Put This In Perspective?
Fatalities
One road departure fatality every 21 minutes
One intersection fatality every hour
One pedestrian fatality about every two hours
Average Day
117 fatalities a day
30% of daily fatalities (35) are under the age of 25
Daily financial loss is $630 million
What is the FHWA Goal to Reduce Roadway Fatalities?
As a safety agency dedicated to saving lives, FHWA has identified improving roadway safety and mobility as a Vital Few -- one FHWA's top three priorities. The other two Vital Few priorities are Congestion and Environmental Streamlining.
The FHWA Safety Programs focuses on high risk areas, such as road departure, intersections and pedestrian safety, in order to make the biggest difference in improving traffic safety.
To reduce road departure, intersection and pedestrian fatalities by 10% by 2007,
FHWA is focusing on six national target areas, two of which are concerned with road departure. They are as follows:
- Road Departure Fatalities: Reduce run-off-the-road, head-on and opposite direction side-swipe crashes by 10% by 2007. Save 2,514 lives.
- Preventing road departure fatalities from occurring
- Minimizing the severity of road departure crashes
- Intersection Fatalities: Reduce by 10% by 2007. Save 921 lives.
- Pedestrian Fatalities: Reduce by 10% by 2007. Save 475 lives.
- Safety Belt Use: Raise seat belt use to 90% by 2008. Save 5,536 lives.
- Safety Awareness: FHWA is working to make sure that safety is an integral part of planning, project development and operations at the state, MPO and local levels.
- What is the FHWA Doing to Solve This National Safety Problem?
FHWA provides national safety leadership through: conducting innovative safety research; setting national highway safety guidelines; and promoting proven or promising safety technologies.
FHWA is actively pursuing improved roadway safety through a multi-faceted approach in the fields of engineering, education, enforcement, and coordination with public safety agencies (police and fire services).
FHWA also partners with a variety of organizations that are interested in improving roadway safety including: the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), State Departments of Transportation, the National Association of County Engineers (NACE), the American Public Works Association (APWA) the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the Transportation Research Board (TRB), the American Automobile Association (AAA), the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations (AMPO), and National Association of Regional Councils (NARC).
Engineering
On the engineering front, FHWA both conducts research and supports private sector research into a variety of innovative design features that create safer roads, intersections and pedestrian crossings.
Road safety design features that help to reduce road departures and minimize the severity of roadway crashes include: rumble strips, retroreflective signs, and forgiving roadside hardware (i.e. guardrails and breakaway poles), skid resistance pavements, and all-weather pavement markings.
Intersection safety design features that make intersections safer for drivers and pedestrians include: traffic signal timing, improved signage, exclusive turn lanes, and roundabouts.
Pedestrian safety design features that create safer pedestrian crossings for all pedestrians, including those with disabilities include: pedestrian-signal timings and pedestrian signals; improved lighting to enhance visibility; truncated domes for blind pedestrians; and refuge islands on a median.
In addition, FHWA is currently developing the Interactive Highway Safety Design Model (IHSDM) software -- an innovative road safety evaluation software that marshals available safety knowledge into a useful form for highway planners and designers.
FHWA is also actively promoting the use of proven or promising safety technologies that will help improve roadway safety including: rumble strips, retroreflective signs and pavement markings, and roundabouts. As the federal agency responsible for setting national highway safety guidelines, FHWA issued a technical advisory on rumble strips; is working on national guidelines for minimum sign retroreflectivity levels; and published a comprehensive information guide on roundabouts.
Education
FHWA's safety program has a strong educational component. Through a variety of educational tools and workshops, FHWA is dedicated to improving public safety awareness and updating highway engineers and roadway planners on the latest safety research.
To this end, FHWA has funded and sponsored numerous videos, handbooks, websites, multilingual brochures, CDs, manuals, computer modeling software, clearinghouses and training courses. Although these educational materials and courses are too many to detail here, a few are listed below.
For example, FHWA funded and sponsored the Pedestrian Safety Roadshow (PSRS), a four-hour educational workshop that is designed for use by community leaders, concerned citizens, and business leaders. The purpose of PSRS is twofold: to assist communities in developing their own approach to pedestrian safety and to increase awareness of pedestrian safety concerns.
Also, to help roadway planners and engineers apply the latest research and technologies on the needs of older drivers and pedestrians, FHWA published The Older Driver Highway Design Handbook and also offer a one-day workshop.
Enforcement
As part of our comprehensive safety program, FHWA engineers work closely with state highway engineers and law enforcement officials to identify appropriate engineering safety countermeasures for high risk locations and for new roads. Working with state and local law enforcement is one of the ways that FHWA makes sure that roadway safety is always a top priority.
Partnership Activities
FHWA believes that partnerships create synergy and are very important to improving roadway safety. FHWA participates in roadway safety partnerships with state and local officials, concerned citizens, local business leaders, schools and youth organizations. The partnership activities listed below are just a few of the safety partnerships that FHWA participates in. More information on FHWA partnership activities can be found on the FHWA Office of Safety web site.
FHWA's top partnership is working with AASHTO on the AASHTO Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP). The goal is to reduce the annual number of highway deaths by 9,000 by 2008 to a rate of 1.0 (down from the current rate of 1.5). This will accomplished through improved safety in 22 key areas concerning infrastructure, vehicles, drivers, and emergency medical services (EMS). FHWA's role is that of providing national leadership, direction, and the development and demonstration of new safety innovations, technologies, and programs. (For more information.)
The successful National Work-Zone Safety Information Clearinghouse website is a good example of what can be accomplished when FHWA partners with other roadway safety groups. It was created in a partnership by FHWA and the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) and the Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) handles the site's day-to-day operations. The National Utility Contractors Associations (NUCA) and the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE) assist ARTBA in marketing and publicizing the clearinghouse.
Started in 1995 by FHWA, Stop Red Light Running (SRLR) is a national initiative to improve intersection safety by reducing the number of red light running incidents. The American Trauma Society became a partner with FHWA in 1998. Over 200 communities, including local law enforcement departments, are currently part of t his nationwide safety program.
In addition, FHWA is a founding member of the Safety Conscious Planning (SCP) Working Group. This group is a national organization dedicated to providing state and metropolitan planners with “best
practices' and opportunities to integrate safety in the planning process. Other partners in the SCP Working Group include: AASHTO, TRB, GHSA, AAA, AMPO, NARC, ITE, and FHWA's DOT sister agencies -- NHTSA, FTA, and FMCSA. For more information on SCP publications and projects there are two web site addresses.
The extensive implementation of yellow-green fluorescent signs around heavily traveled pedestrian crosswalks at school zones, hospitals and airports, is a visible, day-to-day result of successful FHWA and local community partnerships. To improve pedestrian safety through the use of this new pedestrian sign, FHWA partnered with local police departments, schools and hospitals. This new sign has proven to be more visible than the standard, non-fluorescent yellow sign that had been previously used to warn motorists of pedestrian crossings.
Who Is Responsible for Roadway Safety?
Everyone. We all are responsible for driving, walking, and biking safely on our Nation's roads. The engineers and planners have the responsibility to make sure that roads are designed and operating properly -- with safety for all road users in mind. Drivers and pedestrians have the responsibility to always be alert and obey the traffic rules. Passengers should always buckle up and act responsibly. The police and the courts have the responsibility to make sure that the traffic and pedestrian laws are enforced. Public safety agencies have the responsibility of responding to and securing crash locations and enforcing traffic laws. Local communities and county and state governments need to allocate funding for safe roads and increase public awareness about road safety. Everyone should take responsibility for roadway safety.
10 Tips for Driving and Walking Safely
1. It's your responsibility to drive and walk safely so always be alert and attentive to the motorists and pedestrians around you.
2. Never drink and drive. And don't let friends drive drunk.
3. Always buckle up. The life you save could be your own.
4. Obey traffic signals and signs. They are there to keep you and others safe.
5. Make sure you have plenty of time to get to your destination so you don't feel pressured to speed or disobey traffic signals.
6. Don't give into road rage. Your life and the lives of your passengers are more important than angrily reacting to an irresponsible driver.
7. Pedestrians should always wear light-colored or reflective clothing at night to be more visible to drivers.
8. Before you take a left turn at an intersection, make sure it is safe to do so. (More than one-third of all deaths to vehicle occupants occur in side-impact crashes. Most of these occur at intersections.)
9. Obey the speed limits and make sure you drive carefully through intersections and work zones.
10. Don't drive when you are drowsy. If you are drowsy, pull over at a rest area and take a nap before proceeding.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
August 14, 2005 (Houston I-45) Worried residents voice opposition to freeway expansion plan
Worried residents voice opposition to freeway expansion plan
Gene Apodaca
ABC13 Eyewitness News(8/14/05 - HOUSTON) - Hundreds of residents faced off with the Texas Department of Transportation. They're worried about a proposed plan to expand Interstate 45 and they made their concerns heard at a town hall meeting.
Residents are concerned that under the proposed plan their homes would be in jeopardy. Now they're asking the state to look at other alternatives.
For more than 30 years Maria Hurtado has worked to make her Woodland Heights house a home. But now she worries an expansion project could leave her homeless. She said, "I'm still paying on my house. I'm very close to finishing the payments." Hurtado was one of about 800 concerned residents packing Davis High School Saturday. Each was worried about what the proposed I-45 expansion would mean for them.
Heights resident Robin Franklin said, "Destruction of quality of life, taking out homes." "If they take more land than they need and more than the public is willing to give, then it's a lose-lose situation," explained Terry O'Conner, a Woodland Heights resident.
Last month, the Texas Department of Transportation presented its preferred plan for expansion. It's a plan calling for the addition of four managed lanes along I-45 in addition to the existing eight lanes already there. But critics say there are better plans out there. Some want a tunnel to be built, sparing neighboring communities..
Ken Lindow with the I-45 Coalition explained, "We're concerned about losing our homes. We're concerned about more noise, more pollution."
On Saturday, TX-DOT promised to take the suggestions into consideration. "I hope this is a wakeup call to all our mobility advocates and leaders, that you have to listen to the public," said US Rep Sheila Jackson Lee.
A final plan isn't expected until at least October. Until then, those like Hurtado can only wait and worry about their homes. It's estimated that some 90,000 residents would be affected under the current plan.
(Copyright © 2005, KTRK-TV)
Gene Apodaca
ABC13 Eyewitness News(8/14/05 - HOUSTON) - Hundreds of residents faced off with the Texas Department of Transportation. They're worried about a proposed plan to expand Interstate 45 and they made their concerns heard at a town hall meeting.
Residents are concerned that under the proposed plan their homes would be in jeopardy. Now they're asking the state to look at other alternatives.
For more than 30 years Maria Hurtado has worked to make her Woodland Heights house a home. But now she worries an expansion project could leave her homeless. She said, "I'm still paying on my house. I'm very close to finishing the payments." Hurtado was one of about 800 concerned residents packing Davis High School Saturday. Each was worried about what the proposed I-45 expansion would mean for them.
Heights resident Robin Franklin said, "Destruction of quality of life, taking out homes." "If they take more land than they need and more than the public is willing to give, then it's a lose-lose situation," explained Terry O'Conner, a Woodland Heights resident.
Last month, the Texas Department of Transportation presented its preferred plan for expansion. It's a plan calling for the addition of four managed lanes along I-45 in addition to the existing eight lanes already there. But critics say there are better plans out there. Some want a tunnel to be built, sparing neighboring communities..
Ken Lindow with the I-45 Coalition explained, "We're concerned about losing our homes. We're concerned about more noise, more pollution."
On Saturday, TX-DOT promised to take the suggestions into consideration. "I hope this is a wakeup call to all our mobility advocates and leaders, that you have to listen to the public," said US Rep Sheila Jackson Lee.
A final plan isn't expected until at least October. Until then, those like Hurtado can only wait and worry about their homes. It's estimated that some 90,000 residents would be affected under the current plan.
(Copyright © 2005, KTRK-TV)
Friday, November 23, 2007
Cracking China's car market
Cracking China's car market
By Steve Schifferes
Globalisation reporter, BBC News, Liuzhou, Guangxi Province, China
The sleepy, provincial town of Liuzhou is more than 1,200 miles (1,931km) from Shanghai, and 10,000 miles from Detroit. Yet for General Motors, which Toyota claims to have overtaken as the world's largest car company, it is Liuzhou rather than Detroit where the company's future may be decided.
GM has come to Liuzhou to produce a tiny minivan, the Wuling Sunshine, which is a best-seller in China, selling more than 460,000 vehicles a year. The van costs $3,700 (£1,872), has a 0.8 litre engine, have a top speed of 60 mph, and weighs less than 1000kg - yet cheap labour costs mean that GM makes a substantial profit on each vehicle it sells.
Rather than use automation, the Wuling Sunshine is made on an old-fashioned assembly line, which would not look out of date in 1940s Detroit. But with labour costs of just $4 per hour - half the rate in Shanghai - GM Asia Pacific boss Nick Reilly says that the company is only spending $100 per vehicle on labour - and the factory is working around the clock on a three-shift system.
Now GM is investing $350m in building a modern engine plant on the site of the Wuling factory to build 1.1 litre engines, which will open in August, and has expanded production by acquiring another factory in Qingdao. It is the opposite of GM's North American strategy, which has concentrated on selling big, expensive SUVs and trucks - a strategy now threatened by higher petrol prices and changing consumer tastes.
For GM boss Rick Wagoner, China represents a "new model" of production, where the company can make money again as a volume producer of cheap cars, unhindered by union contracts and huge fixed costs.
Rush to China
GM is not alone in identifying China as its key market for the future. There will soon be more cars in China than the US. China's car market grew 25% last year and it has overtaken Japan to be the second-largest car market in the world with sales of 8 million vehicles, including light trucks and minivans.
But with just six car owners per 100 people, compared with 90% car ownership in the US and 80% in the UK, the potential for growth is enormous. According to the research company AC Nielsen, China also has more people who aspire to own a car, but currently do not, than any other country. Also, analysts Roland Berger Associates estimate that the worldwide demand for small cars will rise by 30% in the next decade.
But with the average income in China less than $3,000 a year, reaching the mass market in China is a very different exercise to selling cars in the US or Europe.
Rural marketing
According to James Hu, the sales director of GM-Wuling, the typical Sunshine minivan buyer is male, a small businessman, a high school graduate, and earns between $200 and $500 per month. Over 80% are first-time buyers and most plan to use their minivans for both home and business - sometimes replacing the three-wheeled bicycles in which they used to transport their goods.
Most pay in cash, with sometimes the whole family coming into the dealership with the money in hand. Wuling markets the vehicle through rural China and is expanding its dealer network, which is strong in the poorer, Western regions. In some smaller cities, it shows films in town squares to attract customers.
Fierce competition
Wuling also markets GM's low-priced entry-level car, the Chevrolet Spark, which was designed in Korea. But the Spark, which sells 40,000 vehicles a year, is facing fierce competition from Chinese rivals, especially the Chery-made QQ, which GM at one time accused of stealing its design.
The Chery QQ is 10,000 yuan (£658) cheaper than the Spark and according to vice president Jin Yibo it can compete successfully with the Spark because it has lower development costs. Its sells four times as many small cars as GM. Chery - also based away from coastal China, in Anhui province - is aggressively rolling out new models, including a new A1 compact that was one of the stars at the Shanghai Motor Show.
Overall, rising competition is causing the price of new cars in China to fall by between 7% and 8% per year - cutting into the profit margins of companies like GM.
Rich toys
But China is still a diverse market. Buick is marketed as a luxury brand in China. While GM is selling minivans in rural areas, it is also building and marketing Buicks and Cadillacs in Shanghai, where the Buick van has become a status symbol for companies.
Although the number of private car owners is increasing rapidly, an important part of the Chinese car market is still corporate, especially in the rich coastal cities. With chauffeur-driven cars customary for executives, GM found that the most important modification it had to make for the Chinese market was to increase the size and comfort of the back seat, where the company bosses tend to sit.
GM has even designed a new concept-car version of the Buick at its China-PATAC design centre. But the luxury market is also getting crowded, as multinationals such as Toyota launch their own luxury brands in China. And GM's joint venture approach - its Buicks are built with state-owned Shanghai Automotive Industy Corporation - means it has given its potential rivals access to its technology.
Opportunity
It is not just car companies that are flooding into China. Consumer companies and retailers from around the world are rushing to capitalise on the world's third-largest economy, which has been growing at a rate of 10% per year for two decades.
For most multinationals, Chinese consumers, not Chinese workers, are now their main focus. But understanding how to make a profit in this crowded and diverse market is the real challenge. This is part of series on how globalisation is changing China. Future articles will look at the financial services industry, China's drive overseas, and how Shanghai is tackling pollution.
By Steve Schifferes
Globalisation reporter, BBC News, Liuzhou, Guangxi Province, China
The sleepy, provincial town of Liuzhou is more than 1,200 miles (1,931km) from Shanghai, and 10,000 miles from Detroit. Yet for General Motors, which Toyota claims to have overtaken as the world's largest car company, it is Liuzhou rather than Detroit where the company's future may be decided.
GM has come to Liuzhou to produce a tiny minivan, the Wuling Sunshine, which is a best-seller in China, selling more than 460,000 vehicles a year. The van costs $3,700 (£1,872), has a 0.8 litre engine, have a top speed of 60 mph, and weighs less than 1000kg - yet cheap labour costs mean that GM makes a substantial profit on each vehicle it sells.
Rather than use automation, the Wuling Sunshine is made on an old-fashioned assembly line, which would not look out of date in 1940s Detroit. But with labour costs of just $4 per hour - half the rate in Shanghai - GM Asia Pacific boss Nick Reilly says that the company is only spending $100 per vehicle on labour - and the factory is working around the clock on a three-shift system.
Now GM is investing $350m in building a modern engine plant on the site of the Wuling factory to build 1.1 litre engines, which will open in August, and has expanded production by acquiring another factory in Qingdao. It is the opposite of GM's North American strategy, which has concentrated on selling big, expensive SUVs and trucks - a strategy now threatened by higher petrol prices and changing consumer tastes.
For GM boss Rick Wagoner, China represents a "new model" of production, where the company can make money again as a volume producer of cheap cars, unhindered by union contracts and huge fixed costs.
Rush to China
GM is not alone in identifying China as its key market for the future. There will soon be more cars in China than the US. China's car market grew 25% last year and it has overtaken Japan to be the second-largest car market in the world with sales of 8 million vehicles, including light trucks and minivans.
But with just six car owners per 100 people, compared with 90% car ownership in the US and 80% in the UK, the potential for growth is enormous. According to the research company AC Nielsen, China also has more people who aspire to own a car, but currently do not, than any other country. Also, analysts Roland Berger Associates estimate that the worldwide demand for small cars will rise by 30% in the next decade.
But with the average income in China less than $3,000 a year, reaching the mass market in China is a very different exercise to selling cars in the US or Europe.
Rural marketing
According to James Hu, the sales director of GM-Wuling, the typical Sunshine minivan buyer is male, a small businessman, a high school graduate, and earns between $200 and $500 per month. Over 80% are first-time buyers and most plan to use their minivans for both home and business - sometimes replacing the three-wheeled bicycles in which they used to transport their goods.
Most pay in cash, with sometimes the whole family coming into the dealership with the money in hand. Wuling markets the vehicle through rural China and is expanding its dealer network, which is strong in the poorer, Western regions. In some smaller cities, it shows films in town squares to attract customers.
Fierce competition
Wuling also markets GM's low-priced entry-level car, the Chevrolet Spark, which was designed in Korea. But the Spark, which sells 40,000 vehicles a year, is facing fierce competition from Chinese rivals, especially the Chery-made QQ, which GM at one time accused of stealing its design.
The Chery QQ is 10,000 yuan (£658) cheaper than the Spark and according to vice president Jin Yibo it can compete successfully with the Spark because it has lower development costs. Its sells four times as many small cars as GM. Chery - also based away from coastal China, in Anhui province - is aggressively rolling out new models, including a new A1 compact that was one of the stars at the Shanghai Motor Show.
Overall, rising competition is causing the price of new cars in China to fall by between 7% and 8% per year - cutting into the profit margins of companies like GM.
Rich toys
But China is still a diverse market. Buick is marketed as a luxury brand in China. While GM is selling minivans in rural areas, it is also building and marketing Buicks and Cadillacs in Shanghai, where the Buick van has become a status symbol for companies.
Although the number of private car owners is increasing rapidly, an important part of the Chinese car market is still corporate, especially in the rich coastal cities. With chauffeur-driven cars customary for executives, GM found that the most important modification it had to make for the Chinese market was to increase the size and comfort of the back seat, where the company bosses tend to sit.
GM has even designed a new concept-car version of the Buick at its China-PATAC design centre. But the luxury market is also getting crowded, as multinationals such as Toyota launch their own luxury brands in China. And GM's joint venture approach - its Buicks are built with state-owned Shanghai Automotive Industy Corporation - means it has given its potential rivals access to its technology.
Opportunity
It is not just car companies that are flooding into China. Consumer companies and retailers from around the world are rushing to capitalise on the world's third-largest economy, which has been growing at a rate of 10% per year for two decades.
For most multinationals, Chinese consumers, not Chinese workers, are now their main focus. But understanding how to make a profit in this crowded and diverse market is the real challenge. This is part of series on how globalisation is changing China. Future articles will look at the financial services industry, China's drive overseas, and how Shanghai is tackling pollution.
May 27, 2007 Can Shanghai turn green and grow?
Can Shanghai turn green and grow?
By Steve Schifferes
Shanghai has been transformed into a global city - but its rapid growth has produced pollution, traffic jams and overcrowding. In becoming one of the centres of the world economy, Shanghai has grown faster than almost any other global city in the past 15 years. The population increased from 13.5 million to 21.5 million as migrant labourers flooded in from the surrounding countryside, and the standard of living rose even faster, with per capita income now at $7,000, the highest in China.
The physical size of the city increased sixfold, from just 100 sq km to 680 sq km, as people sought more space and the city government rushed to develop nearby areas, such as Pudong. Three ring roads and six motorways now criss-cross the city, and gridlock grips the bridges and tunnels across the Huangpu river during rush hours.
The city has also seen an explosion in car ownership, with over 1 million car owners in 2006, and private car ownership has doubled in two years. The increased traffic levels contributed to rising levels of atmospheric pollution. Now the city of Shanghai has begun to tackle some of the environmental problems that could threaten its future growth.
Building new towns
Despite its size, Shanghai is still much more densely populated than Western cities, with four times more people per square kilometre than New York. And according to Michael Kwok, head of the architectural consultants Arup in Shanghai, there is very little land left to build on in the central city, after a decade of rapid development. So Shanghai's planners want to limit population growth in the centre by building satellite towns in the outskirts.
Like the UK's New Towns, constructed not long after World War Two to disperse population out of London's most overcrowded districts, the idea is to provide cheaper housing and jobs to attract people to leave congested areas.
Under Shanghai's "One City - Nine Towns" plan, Shanghai is planning nine new cities which will eventually house 500,000 people each. Six of the cities are themed to look like European cities, including the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Sweden. Thamestown, which opened in October 2006, has themed pubs and Tudor-looking architecture concealing high-rise blocks. But critics say that so far, most of the housing built in such towns is out of reach of ordinary citizens. And they argue that the cities have so far not created enough jobs to prevent most residents from commuting into Shanghai, adding to transportation pressures.
Discouraging car ownership
Shanghai has made it expensive to own a car in the city. The city sets a strict limit on the number of licences it will issue for private car ownership - currently around 80,000 per year - and then auctions them off. With the high demand for cars, the current cost of getting a car license in Shanghai is over 40,000 RMB ($5,500; £2,750).
However, a significant factor in Shanghai is the use of cars - and minivans - by private businesses. Over half of all cars in Shanghai are owned by companies - who are less sensitive to financial constraints.
Investment in public transport
(The modern metro carries 1.8 million a day) According to Professor Chen of Tongji University School of Transportation Engineering, the city is now investing heavily in public transport. Since the mid-1990s, it has built an extensive metro system, with five lines, now used by 1.8 million people per day, and it is now planning six new lines. If it carries out all its plans, the length of the system will exceed London's, the world's biggest.
Buses and the poor
Overall, one-quarter of journeys in Shanghai are by public transport, and the city would like to increase that to 30% by 2010. According to Professor Chen, that will mean boosting the numbers who ride the buses as well. Shanghai has more than 1,000 bus routes, run by a variety of private bus companies, but the system of interchanges between lines is confusing and expensive. She has convinced the city that it should make all transfers free in order to encourage more people to ride the system.
Bicycles and scooters
Despite the spread of car ownership, two-thirds of private journeys in Shanghai are by two-wheeled vehicles such as bicycles and scooters. The city has already banned larger motorbikes, and has introduced restrictions on bikes on the many commuter highways in the city. But it is also building 180km of dedicated bike lanes, especially in newly built areas like Pudong, where bicycles will be segregated from scooters.
Affluence and growth
Shanghai has had some success in tackling its environmental issues. One fact has been a strong planning system, coupled with the fact that the government owns all the land. This has allowed the rapid redevelopment of the city and its infrastructure - as well as generating money to pay for big infrastructure projects.
Air quality has improved with unacceptable days dropping from 20% to 10% in the past five years. But water pollution, is worse, as the rapid growth of industry in the Shanghai region, upstream of the city, has made it harder to keep the city's main water source, the Yangtze River, clean.
Human cost
The city's speed at developing its infrastructure has also come with a human cost, with millions of people displaced for public and private building projects. According to Michael Kwok, in the early days of Shanghai's development it was relatively easy to relocate people to outlying areas, but now people are demanding more compensation.
More broadly, Shanghai is the still the embodiment of China's economic dream of living in an affluent society on a Western scale. Those aspirations - for more land and housing, as well as more consumer durables like cars and air conditioners - are likely to put further pressure on Shanghai's environment in the future.
This is part of a series on how globalisation is changing China's largest city, Shanghai. Further articles will explore the issue of migrant labour and look at plans for an eco-city.
By Steve Schifferes
Shanghai has been transformed into a global city - but its rapid growth has produced pollution, traffic jams and overcrowding. In becoming one of the centres of the world economy, Shanghai has grown faster than almost any other global city in the past 15 years. The population increased from 13.5 million to 21.5 million as migrant labourers flooded in from the surrounding countryside, and the standard of living rose even faster, with per capita income now at $7,000, the highest in China.
The physical size of the city increased sixfold, from just 100 sq km to 680 sq km, as people sought more space and the city government rushed to develop nearby areas, such as Pudong. Three ring roads and six motorways now criss-cross the city, and gridlock grips the bridges and tunnels across the Huangpu river during rush hours.
The city has also seen an explosion in car ownership, with over 1 million car owners in 2006, and private car ownership has doubled in two years. The increased traffic levels contributed to rising levels of atmospheric pollution. Now the city of Shanghai has begun to tackle some of the environmental problems that could threaten its future growth.
Building new towns
Despite its size, Shanghai is still much more densely populated than Western cities, with four times more people per square kilometre than New York. And according to Michael Kwok, head of the architectural consultants Arup in Shanghai, there is very little land left to build on in the central city, after a decade of rapid development. So Shanghai's planners want to limit population growth in the centre by building satellite towns in the outskirts.
Like the UK's New Towns, constructed not long after World War Two to disperse population out of London's most overcrowded districts, the idea is to provide cheaper housing and jobs to attract people to leave congested areas.
Under Shanghai's "One City - Nine Towns" plan, Shanghai is planning nine new cities which will eventually house 500,000 people each. Six of the cities are themed to look like European cities, including the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Sweden. Thamestown, which opened in October 2006, has themed pubs and Tudor-looking architecture concealing high-rise blocks. But critics say that so far, most of the housing built in such towns is out of reach of ordinary citizens. And they argue that the cities have so far not created enough jobs to prevent most residents from commuting into Shanghai, adding to transportation pressures.
Discouraging car ownership
Shanghai has made it expensive to own a car in the city. The city sets a strict limit on the number of licences it will issue for private car ownership - currently around 80,000 per year - and then auctions them off. With the high demand for cars, the current cost of getting a car license in Shanghai is over 40,000 RMB ($5,500; £2,750).
However, a significant factor in Shanghai is the use of cars - and minivans - by private businesses. Over half of all cars in Shanghai are owned by companies - who are less sensitive to financial constraints.
Investment in public transport
(The modern metro carries 1.8 million a day) According to Professor Chen of Tongji University School of Transportation Engineering, the city is now investing heavily in public transport. Since the mid-1990s, it has built an extensive metro system, with five lines, now used by 1.8 million people per day, and it is now planning six new lines. If it carries out all its plans, the length of the system will exceed London's, the world's biggest.
Buses and the poor
Overall, one-quarter of journeys in Shanghai are by public transport, and the city would like to increase that to 30% by 2010. According to Professor Chen, that will mean boosting the numbers who ride the buses as well. Shanghai has more than 1,000 bus routes, run by a variety of private bus companies, but the system of interchanges between lines is confusing and expensive. She has convinced the city that it should make all transfers free in order to encourage more people to ride the system.
Bicycles and scooters
Despite the spread of car ownership, two-thirds of private journeys in Shanghai are by two-wheeled vehicles such as bicycles and scooters. The city has already banned larger motorbikes, and has introduced restrictions on bikes on the many commuter highways in the city. But it is also building 180km of dedicated bike lanes, especially in newly built areas like Pudong, where bicycles will be segregated from scooters.
Affluence and growth
Shanghai has had some success in tackling its environmental issues. One fact has been a strong planning system, coupled with the fact that the government owns all the land. This has allowed the rapid redevelopment of the city and its infrastructure - as well as generating money to pay for big infrastructure projects.
Air quality has improved with unacceptable days dropping from 20% to 10% in the past five years. But water pollution, is worse, as the rapid growth of industry in the Shanghai region, upstream of the city, has made it harder to keep the city's main water source, the Yangtze River, clean.
Human cost
The city's speed at developing its infrastructure has also come with a human cost, with millions of people displaced for public and private building projects. According to Michael Kwok, in the early days of Shanghai's development it was relatively easy to relocate people to outlying areas, but now people are demanding more compensation.
More broadly, Shanghai is the still the embodiment of China's economic dream of living in an affluent society on a Western scale. Those aspirations - for more land and housing, as well as more consumer durables like cars and air conditioners - are likely to put further pressure on Shanghai's environment in the future.
This is part of a series on how globalisation is changing China's largest city, Shanghai. Further articles will explore the issue of migrant labour and look at plans for an eco-city.
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