Shanghai needs less cars, more traffic enforcement

Amidst the worst congestion crisis in our city's history, Shanghai will be hosting the upcoming 16th annual International Automobile Industry Exhibition. The popular auto show, held from April 22 to 29, has always been a hot topic among local residents and the media, and the recently announced ban on sexy show girls and children from this year's exhibition has once again stirred heated discussions.



The decision to forbid the former related to the central government's concern about increasing vulgarity in society, and the latter merely a safety issue. What's distressing, however, is that netizens would rather debate about babes and babies instead of the real issues that have turned Shanghai's roads into some of the worst in the world.



China's rapid economic development has resulted in an unprecedented number of domestic drivers, growing 15-20 percent year-on-year with over 20 million cars sold in 2014, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Although local governments have scrambled to construct elevated expressways and widen streets that for the past century were intended primarily to accommodate bicyclists, the fact is that our urban planners simply can't keep up.



In Shanghai, which currently claims over 3 million registered automobiles, the resulting gridlock has reached apocalyptic proportions. Our city now ranks 24th among the world's most congested cities. Authorities are desperately attempting various measures to relieve the roads, such as license plate auctioning, prohibiting non-local vehicles from driving during rush hour, and constructing more metro lines. Yet the overall situation on the streets of Shanghai remains bleak.



Last year there were 10.29 million traffic violations in Shanghai, including speeding, drunk driving and running red lights. Seven hundred and seventy three fatalities occurred as a result of these accidents. Transportation authorities in Shanghai claim they have made its driving test, which statistically has a 50-70 percent pass rate, more difficult. But apparently, knowing the rules of the road doesn't mean anyone will actually abide by them.



Drivers in Shanghai are notorious for running lights, bullying their way through pedestrian crossings when turning right and parking illegally. Merely stepping off the curb puts the average pedestrian here at the mercy of these reckless drivers, largely composed of newly minted nouveau riche in shiny sedans who believe they are above traffic laws.



The recent tragedy of Shanghai traffic policeman Mao Shengquan, who was killed by a BMW driver purposely disobeying the officer's orders to pull over after committing a moving violation, is yet another example of the sheer arrogance of local drivers.



We can hope that the death of Officer Mao will compel Shanghai authorities to enforce traffic laws more stringently than they have in the past, but the unfortunate fact is that there are few effective deterrents for bad driving. Traffic law enforcement in Shanghai is largely seen as ineffectual, and errant motorists often take it for granted that they can simply drive away from a traffic cop with impunity.



And still, in spite of all these interconnected calamities related to the city's overheating car market, we still feel the need to host an automobile exhibition. As if Shanghai needs even more cars on its suffering streets.



I understand that the prominence of this motor show parallels China's prominent car market, now the world's largest, but it's high time our government push back against the auto industry and get their priorities straight. The real vulgarity occurring in Shanghai is not Gan Lulu's, um, headlights, and the real safety issues are not a few children running around the expo show floor.



Shanghai's roads are under duress. It is imperative to the future of our city that transportation authorities immediately begin taking a proactive approach to curbing the number of cars and conduct aggressive transport demand management strategies. It is equally incumbent on traffic law enforcement to actually enforce the law. A city is only as strong as its infrastructure.

