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Xi'an: No plan to ban bicycles

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-07-23 17:05

Local authorities in Xi'an denied trying to ban bicycles in parts of the city in an announcement posted on the local government's website Wednesday.

"We have never tried to ban bicycles in the city and Sanqin Daily's report is under investigation," it said.

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Sanqin Daily, a local newspaper, reported on July 10 that Xi'an's vice mayor Zhu Zhisheng said at a recent conference the city is planning to ban tricycles, bicycles and motorcycles in scenic spots and main streets of Xi'an because they negatively affect the traffic flow and the city's image as an international tourist destination.

A government announcement published on cnwest.com, Shannxi Province's official news website, also said Xi'an is planning to crack down on illegal or unlicensed electric bicycle, tricycle and motorcycle taxis.

But the Xi'an city government published the Vice Mayor's address on its official website, and the published version includes nothing related to "banning bicycles in Xi'an."

Netizens criticized the idea of banning bicycles, saying ordinary people who could not afford to buy a car should not be discriminated against.

"Are bicycle riders not also a part of the public?" one online post at bbs.cnwest.com read.

Bicycle is the most popular personal transportation vehicles in many Chinese cities. For instance, there are an estimated 7.5 million bikes in Beijing, while the city's number of permanent residents is nearly 17 million, according to official statics.