In this huge area , where until recently Modern Highrises were highly unusual and city limits extend a 130 kilometers ( 80 miles ), efficient public transport has always been vital to City Life. In the Old Days this job was mainly done by the City Bus, the Bicycle, Taxi's and the then new Metro System. In those days which lasted untill at least 1995 the Metro System and certainly Taxi's
Transport in Beijing - Recent Developments (since 2002).
There is only one airport in the City of Beijing. This is Beijing Capital International Airport located North-East of the Village of Shunyi, now an outlying District of the larger City. Beijing Capital Airport is connected to the second ring road in the North-West.
Take your airplane to the Capital Cities of all 21 Provinces, 4 Autonomous Regions and the Special Administrative Regions, as well as many other national and International destinations.The options keep growing every year.
Although modernized immediatly after the new millenium, the Airport already has its own and brandnew modernization Plan to increase Capacity, connect better to the Cities and Districts, and last but not least Impress the coming visitors that will flock to the 2008 AD Olympic Games of Beijing.
As both the design of this website and the Architecture of the New Capital Airport are of 100% Dutch Origin ( I.e. created by citizens of The Netherlands) we will have an especially long report due on this architectural juggernaut in the Future.
The Main Railroad Station of Beijing + Menu to All other Stations of the City,
Beijing Zhan as the Main Railway Station is called is located in the Lower East Corner of DongCheng District, just inside the 2nd Ring Road on the border of ChaoYang District. Beijing Zhan is usually a busy place with many travellers, porters,taxi's ,busses and vendors. And some crooks. View a first impression with directions, photos and general information on Beijing' Main Train Station.
Beijing Rickshaws
Less and Less in use since the advent of private car ownership in Beijing and the upgrade of the entire transportation system for modern use and 2008 Beijing Olympics, Beijing rickshaws are a historic charm of Beijing and should never be lost !! Have a Fun Tour through Photos of the many different forms Beijing Rickshaw Transport comes in, with small explanations in fun text.
ChinaReport.comat
New Developments of the Transportation System in the City of Beijing since roughly the year 2000 AD have been many fold. The 2005 election of the City to host the Olympic Games of August 2008 have only enhanced the need for modernizations and increased the speed of change.
Essential first information on Beijing Busses, different types and lines, tips for use.
More Bus-Line specifics when available !
New developments so far include the establishment of an efficient and clean mass transit bus system with larger and cleaner busses, the introduction of exclusive bus-lanes,bus priority at intersections and the addition of options to buy tickets outside of the Bus. This was new in Beijing. To support the modernization of the transport system, the transportation systems management has undergone its own large scale overhaul, the now Olympic City eagerly bringing in knowledge and advice from other cities, including those overseas.
In Beijing the Old Diesel Fueled Busses from the 1980's and 1990's have quickly given way to much larger, more economic and now cleaner and cleaner busses transporting citizens around the City.
Busses are truly everywhere in Beijing. During the Olympics of 2008 large Busses with a capacity of 250 to 300 passengers are planned to shuttle the Olympic Visitors to their Venues. Current useful services already available for Tourists include direct Bus Lines to the Summer Palace Park on the Northern Border of the Haidian District (now also reachable via the Subway), The Ming Tombs Valley near ChangPing Village and the Great Wall of China at Badaling Village. Naturally, there are busses from Capital Airport into the City. The New Capital Airport will be an architectural wonder with a completely modern Central Terminal which will include a Subway/Metro Line directly connecting to the Central City and all other districts.
The latest useful, efficient and practical addition now available is the introduction of an electronic ticket for combined use in Bus AND Metro System !! Get the pre-payed electronic ticket, aptly named "Smart Card", at any subway station, bus ticket office or at one of the many street stalls on Beijing's Streets. It will even reduce your fares !
Beijing Metro / Subway System The first new modernization of the Beijing Subway after 1969 began with the addition of a third line, running between Central Beijing and the far Haidian District. The 3Rd Line was first connected to The Summer Palace World Heritage Park(s), then continued through to what is now Olympic Park in North Haidian, the main location of the coming Olympic Events.
In the Future this line will connect further North to ChangPing Village near the Ming Tombs Mausoleum Valley, the end of the Line.
A Further two new lines, Line Number 5 and the First Phase of Line Number 10 to connect ChaoYang and its Central Business District were added, reaching completion in 2007.
At the moment there are 5 subway lines traversing Beijing. In addition to this,
Beijing Taxi's - the Number of Stray vacant Taxi's cruising the City and causing disturbances at Night by their honking will be reduced. Special Taxi Zones will be established, first in the City Center. Passengers are
now able to order a Taxi by Phone, a phenomenon relatively new to Beijing (and China). Beijing's large Taxi companies are cooperating in a central taxi dispatch service.
Not so often mentioned but very visible, the Taxi Companies have been forced to contribute to City Pollution Control by adding an ever increasing standard for vehicle fuel-efficiency and sevel raises in emission standards. Most Taxi's are brandnew & modern cars.
were (economically) reserved for the more affluent. Most Beijing workers walked, bicycled or Bussed to their jobs. Many still do today. Its a blast to have a bicycle Tour of the City.
The Metro or Subway was a later addition. Modernizations of the City Transportation system started with the addition of 2 metro/subway lines to the City in the 1960 years, the first one opened on National Day of 1969. These were 1 linear lines and one circular line, the latter folowing the path of the 2nd ring road, the main highway encircling the city at the Time.
With excellent city transportation having grown even more essential in these modern Times, the City of Beijing has upgraded the transportation system several Times in the late 1990's/ Early 2000's and now has an
excellent, efficient, cleaner and still improving Public Transport System including several types of City-Busses, Long Distance Bus Lines, modifications and new criteria of service for the "Bullet" Taxi's and an extended Metro ( subway ) system.
With the rapid growth of Beijing, the Local Economy and the year 2005 election of Beijing to host the 2008 Olympic Games a new expansion and modernization drive took a hold over the cities traffic administrators (The so-called Beijing Municipal Commission of Communications). In anticipation of the 2008 Beijing Olympics and under influence of growing private car-sales, traffic congestion and air-pollution, rapid modernizations of the City Public Transportation System are proceeding on a daily basis. Through well-planned but rapid changes and upgrades, the Beijing Public Transportation System is to be cleaner, more effective
and all-city covering by 2010 AD.
Currently more and more subway stations, train stations and other facilities of the transportation system are being updated to accommodate better for special
Proper Beijing Taxi's have Taxi Meters, are colorcoded by price-category and have a sticker clearly showing the fee per mile on their exterior.
Beijing Trains and Railways - The last section of our text is dedicated to the railway systems connecting Beijing to the outlying villages and Cities of Beijing City Province, as well as those of larger Hebei Province and the rest of China beyond. Although most Tourist and Business will arrive by Air, the Beijing Trains can take you where-ever you like in the Province, in Hebei or on through China.
The Main Railway Station of Beijing officially still is the Beijing Zhan now for a century located just inside the Location of the (former) City Walls in the south of DongCheng District. In Function, importance and number of travelers Beijing Zhan is closely rivalled by the even larger Beijing Western Railway Station, a huge complex which is located due West of the Central City, beyond XuanwuMen and its South
Cathedral, outside the former City Walls in what is part of the Fengtai District. Take the train to Badaling Station and the Great Wall of China from the Northern or XizhiMen Station in the south of Haidian District, just East of Beijing Zoo.
The Southern Railway Station at YongdingMen, in Fengtai District South-
West of the Temple of Heaven Park is currently under complete reconstruction and closed for the Time being. The whole station will be rebuilt 500 meters from its original location so construction will take a while.
The Beijing Western Railway Station mainly has trains heading North-West, South-West and due South out of the City of Beijing. These include the train to Datong in North-Shanxi Province
The Gigantic Western Railway Station of Beijing, the main railway link West or South into China. The Western Station is the largest station in Beijing.
The Modern Front of the Passenger Terminal at Beijing Capital Airport is already slated to disappear. In view of the Old Terminal and new and much larger Terminal has arisen and is currently under completion to be ready for start up in early 2008.
Soon additional information on the architectural design and practical features of the New Capital Airport !
The new Airport Terminal will include a large subway station enabling travelers to connect directly to their Hotels in the Central City or the ChaoYang Business District.
Latest Addition : Beijing 2015 Subway/Metro Map - All New Stations and Lines, Complete System. More Updates due Soon as we add our last Photos and then as much background information as possible !
Examples of air-pollution and Gobi Desert dust "Yellow Cloud" in Beijing in 2002 and 2003 AD.
QianMen in Smog.
Yellow Cloud.
For more historic backgrounds as well as the most acurate and detailed information so far available on the Beijing Subway / Metro System, please click through to read our special Report Pages with Maps, Photos and explanations on the Beijing Subway Trains.
Currently the most useful thing to notice when using the Subway and/or Bus Lines of Beijing is the recent Introduction of a Pre-Payed Electronic Ticket which is Useable on both Subway and Bus Lines. Now Bus & Subway tickets are combined in the electronic smart-card and discussions with Bus Personel in Mandarin can mostly be avoided. Just get on, pay with your ticket and stay put untill you (think you) have reached your destination.
The appearance of all modernized Busses has eliminated the earlier distinctions between air-conditioned (expensive) and non-air-concitioned busses (cheapest). All Bus Faires are now equal. Hence, Beijing is now predominantly a Bus and Car City.
passengers and travelers such as the blind, the handicapped or elderly.
With all these improvements in quality, the Beijing City Government hopes to draw at least a part of the Cities' commuters back onto cheap and convenient Public Transport, reducing the strain on Beijing's car-clogged streets and hopefully clearing the air somewhat. Recognizing the detrimental influence of the car explosion on Beijing's air-quality and the general depreciation of living conditions in the City Center accompanying it, the City of Beijing Government has now given public transportation a strategic position in the city’s sustainable development planning, and recognizes that this service should be provided as a not-for-profit (public) service to society..
the Olympic Park and the New Capital Airport will have their own subway lines open in the year 2008. By the Time of the Beijing Olympics in August of 2008, the Subway is scheduled to have 192 Kilometers of underground railroads ready to transport the bulk of the visitors to and from the Olympic Venues.
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Beijing Main Railway Station (in very general terms) mainly hosts trains heading North and North-East and East from the City of Beijing. The train to Chengde, the home of the "Fleeing the Heat Mountain Villa" Imperial Summer Resort of the Ching Dynasty in Northern Hebei Province originates here. If you are bound for Tianjin or Qingdao in Shandong Province, this is also your place of departure. Immediatly after leaving the station you will pass by the South-East Corner watchtower of the (former) Ming Dynasty Era City Walls. This Giant Gate, also known as the Red Gate, houses a Famed Modern Art Gallery and gives an excellent view of the Train Stations Platforms and emplacements.
View of the Beijing Main Railway Station and it's many trains from the Platform of the South-East Corner Watchtower (Red Gate) !
and on to Hohhot and BaoTou in Inner Mongolia. South-bound are the trains connecting through Baoding and Shijiazhuang in Hebei Province on to TaiYuan and Pingyao in Central Shanxi Province. This train-line can take you all the way through to Xi'An in Shaanxi Province in some 15 hours Time.
The Western Railroad Station is the largest Station in the City of Beijing. There are a total of four train stations in Beijing.
Inside a Beijing Subway/Metro Station on the Blue Circular Line.
The caracteristic 3 Loops of Beijing North or XizhiMen Station in Haidian District.
Full Map of the Beijing Subway System of 2015 AD - Click Map for FULL Version !
Travel and Transportation in Beijing City Province
In the recent past Beijing Municipality was difficult to reach for Foreign Travelers unable to speak and read Chinese and/or manage the intimidating Train Schedules and Bus Lines that lead into the Province. For all practical purposes, hardly
anyone traveled there except by well organized guided tour and bus ride. The only alternatives for traveling into the Province where the train to Badaling to be taken from Xizhimen Station in the Haidian District and the Long Range Bus Lines traveling to Yiheyuan - Summer Palace and then onwards to Badaling Great Wall and the 13 Ming Toms (Shi San Ling). Of course those with enough finance could arrange to rent a Private Cab (Taxi) for a day or rent a car en go anywhere wished for.
Other modernizations to the Beijing City Public Transportation System involve the Highways surrounding the City. Beijing has seen an explosion in private car ownership, which was still virtually nonexistent in the year 2002. This trend will be continuing for years and has brought with it a dire need to keep up with the traffic increases by building more and more modern highways to connect the separate districts and counties of this mega-metropolis. Beijing, the easily traversed city of 1999, where it was still possible to cross the highway or Chang An Avenue on foot, easily without any danger, has turned into a quagmire of droning and polluting cars.
To allay these sores of modernity the number of ring roads encircling the city was extended from the three ring roads in the 1990's to five ring roads. By 2005 fifteen new wide roads had been constructed to interconnect these new ring roads, creating a spider-web of highways and including the outer districts into the Cities transportation system. Others roads have been repaired and upgraded to handle the increased traffic volumes.
Also in the year 2005, the cities Airport Expressway, the toll-road connecting to North-Eastern Shunzi Village and Beijing Capital Airport was connected through to the second ring road of the City. This, in theory cut travel time to the airport by some 15 minutes, however the increase in private cars on Beijing's Roads meanwhile has nullified this effect (2007). According to our sources a 6Th and last Ring Road is now planned and under construction.
The number of registered vehicles in Beijing has swelled to three million in May of 2007. With more than 1,000 new cars taking to the roads daily, the number is expected to top 3.15 million by 2008.
For the Olympic Games the Beijing City Government expects a flood of two million domestic tourists in addition to the half million foreign visitors attracted to the Games. In August of 2008, during the Olympic Games, a large number of these cars, a total of over 1 million vehicles including government-owned cars, were barred from city roads, cutting traffic by 50 procent or more. The majority of visitors used the Metro / Subway System to reach destination. Olympic ticket holders and workers were allowed to ride public transport free, so no one needed to worry about their tickets !!!
AFC CARD - Palm Sized Smart Card for Beijing's Public Transportation System :
Introduced some ways in advance of the August 2008 Beijing Olympics the AFC Card was introduced to Beijing's masses of daily commuters. Although paper tickets for Bus & Subway can still be purchased, the AFC Card has now become the standard and smartest way to Travel swiftly in and around the huge Metropolis of Beijing. Buy the smartcard for your prefered period and amount and save on fees and hassle.
Important to know for first time visitors, is that the AFC -automatic fair collection system- Card can be puchased at any subway station, train station, large bus station (not bus stop) and various stores and street stalls. Use the AFC Card to gain access to the Platform of correct line at the Subway Station. In the case of Bus Travel, make sure to get in at the correct door, and use the AFC Card to pay your way. Mind you: exiting the Bus is done through any door other than the one with the AF Card Machine/Reader.
Apart from this it is STILL POSSIBLE to pucrhase a paper ticket, both for the subway/metro system, as well as all Bus Lines.
Today this is no longer the case. Starting with the advent of modernity in Beijing in the years between 2000 and 2002 AD, followed by rapidly by a massive economic boom and the development of the City as the host for the 2008 AD Olympic Games, Beijing has transformed itself into a thoroughly modern City with an extended public transportation system and quality facilities for Foreign Travelers. All road signs, train- and subway schedules are available in English Language and other such minimum necessities for comfortable travel have been installed. Direct Trains now connect to the Capital International Airport, Subway Lines arch the City and connect to outlying districts and a newly constructed highway system makes travel throughout easy.
