An Olympic Tryout in Beijing: Banning Cars, Briefly

BEIJING, Aug. 17 -- More than a million cars were banned from Beijing's notoriously clogged streets Friday in a test run for all-out measures to reduce pollution during the 2008 Olympics.

The experiment, scheduled to last four days, meant that about a third of the more than 3 million cars registered to operate in Beijing were obliged to stay parked, city officials said. By its scope and its top-down imposition without public consultation, the ban dramatized the determination of China's authoritarian government to do whatever is necessary to enhance next summer's Beijing Games.

Although partial driving bans have long been imposed in other pollution-plagued metropolises, such as Mexico City, Beijing's effort to ground more than a million cars was unusually large-scale, befitting the capital of the world's most populous nation.

Traffic during the morning rush hour seemed unusually fluid, with buses and taxis predominating in an even flow of vehicles along the capital's often backed-up arteries. Predictions of jammed buses and long lines at the stops seemed not to materialize. Bus passengers along several thoroughfares got on and off with ease and the lines they formed were no longer than normal on a busy weekday.

Guo Feng, an office worker, said he found the subway more crowded than usual but nevertheless supported the test. "I like this measure," he said. "There are just too many private cars on the street, and this policy is good for the environment."

Friday's ban was only a first step, however, with no prospect of lasting change. Li Ma, a receptionist heading for her downtown office, noted the improved traffic but questioned whether the ban was more than a publicity stunt. "This is not the way to really solve Beijing's pollution problem," she said. "Four days from now, the problem will be back again."

For the Olympic Games next summer, Beijing has pledged to enforce a full two weeks of driving restrictions, responding to fears that the capital's foul air could endanger the health of athletes and spectators. In addition, it has promised that factories in and around the city will close down and rainmakers will bombard the clouds to flush out the atmosphere or precipitate summer storms before they disrupt the competition.

In the test, cars with license plates ending in even numbers were barred from driving Friday, with odd numbers getting their turn Saturday, and so on through Monday. The Traffic Management Bureau estimated that about 1.3 million cars a day would be affected, including vehicles from surrounding provinces that were subjected to the same restrictions on entering the city limits.

But officials were unsure how many of those cars would have been on the street had the ban not been in effect, with estimates ranging from 400,000 to more than a million. Special pollution monitoring stations were set up around the city in an effort to see how the test affected Beijing's often noxious air, the officials said, but it was unclear when the results would be known.

Government motor pools were placed under a special ban designed to keep 70 percent of official vehicles off the roads, except for police cars and ambulances. But officials said the main target was private cars, which make up about 80 percent of the total.

Police were told to stop violators and fine them the equivalent of $13, relatively painless by Beijing standards. In addition to normal traffic patrolmen, traffic bureau administrators were ordered to leave their offices and help enforce the ban at about 600 special observation posts. Several cars whose drivers defied the ban were stopped by police and immobilized at the curb.

"There is no way to escape from the police," an officer said in a telephone interview.

City officials named the test "Lucky Beijing." The city administration extended subway hours and added trains to handle commuters barred from their usual drive to work. An extra 772 buses were rolled out, and taxi companies were ordered to make sure 95 percent of their vehicles were running during the experiment.

The Communist Party government has seized on the Olympics as a platform to show the world how far China has come in the last three decades of reforms and meteoric economic growth. At home, meanwhile, the Chinese people have largely embraced the Games with nationalist pride, seeing them as a validation of their progress and, in some ways, their government.

But the car ban, taking place over four days including a weekend, nevertheless ran against the grain of many Beijing residents for whom owning a car has become a symbol of success. The increase in the number of people who can buy a family car and own an apartment -- impossible dreams a generation ago -- has played a big role in the Communist Party's continued grip on power.

Although Beijing has a long tradition of bicycles, they have largely been eclipsed by the 1,000 new vehicles that take to the capital's streets each day.