CRI听力：Traffic Services Ready for the Olympics

 

Seven thousand cars and 13,000 drivers are gearing up to meet the transportation needs of the upcoming Olympic Games.

Just 10 days away from the opening of the 29th Olympic Games, a Beijing traffic official says the city's high-quality public transportation system is ready for the event.

Our reporter Dan Dan has the details.(Www.hXen.com)

Starting July 20, nearly 1,500 vehicles were put into use for the Olympics. Yu Chunquan, director of BOCOG's Transport Department, says operations are thus far smooth and satisfactory, though challenges have emerged as well.

"We encountered some individualized transportation needs in the past week. Under the general guidelines, we're doing our best to meet those needs."

Transport services for the games will last for more than two months after the preliminary opening of the Olympic Village on July 20, to three days after the closing of the Paralympic Village on September 20.

To ensure safe, timely, and convenient transport in the capital, the local government introduced an even-odd driving policy more than one week ago. Under this policy, private cars with even and odd license plate numbers can drive only on alternate days for the next two months.

Wang Li, vice director of the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau, elaborates on the changes this policy has so far brought to the city.

"Compared with the period before the policy was implemented, the traffic situation in the city has improved significantly. We have seen a 78 percent reduction in traffic jam reports and a 47 percent reduction in accident reports. The peak traffic load on seven major roads has dropped by nearly 25 percent."

Beijing plans to remove as many as two million cars from its roads during the games. In addition to the even-odd policy, the local government has also designated 285 kilometers' worth of Olympic lanes. These lanes are dedicated to vehicles serving the Olympic Games.

Despite all these efforts, Wang Li admits that challenges still remain to guarantee that there will be no traffic jam during the Olympic period.

"For example, on rainy days, there might be water on the road that slows down traffic. So I can't 100 percent guarantee that there won't be any traffic jams. What I can guarantee is that athletes can get to their destinations on time."

The official says tailor-made emergency plans will ensure every athlete gets to his or her venue on time.

Dan Dan, CRI News.