1.
Airport Expressway (Beijing)
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The Airport Expressway, officially the S12, is a controlled-access highway in Beijing, China, which links central Beijing to the Beijing Capital International Airport. It is just under 20 km in length, opened in 1993, the expressway links Sanyuanqiao on the northeastern 3rd Ring Road to Beijing Airport. Another expressway, the 2nd Airport Expressway, was built in 2008 prior to the Beijing Olympics to serve traffic from the city to the airport, the Airport Expressway runs entirely within the confines of the municipality of Beijing. Basic Route, Beijing Status, The entire expressway is complete, the expressway opened on September 14,1993, following a year-long construction effort which began on July 2,1992. Previously, all used the old Airport Road, which was tested to the limit in the early 1990s. This expressway has slashed driving time to the airport from the hour to just around 15 minutes. It is convenient and traffic is usually smooth, a 2.5 km stretch of expressway links Sanyuanqiao on the 3rd Ring Road to the area between Dongzhimen and Xiaojieqiao on the 2nd Ring Road. Construction started in 2004, it was finished in 2006, further approach routes to the airport were built in the first decade of the 21st Century. The Northern Airport Line, completed between 2005 and 2006, connected the Jingcheng Expressway with the part of the airport. The route commences at Lutong, just over halfway between the 5th Ring Road and the 6th Ring Road, on the Jingcheng Expressway. In 2008, another route, the 2nd Airport Expressway, was built between the eastern 5th Ring Road and the airport in time for the Beijing Olympics, both routes have significantly alleviated traffic to the airport from the city proper. Leftmost lane, minimum 100 km/h, maximum 120 km/h, other lanes, minimum 60 –80 km/h, maximum 100 km/h. CNY0. 5/km as of 5th Ring Road intersection for sections south of the toll gate, entire stretch from Sanyuanqiao to Beijing Capital International Airport costs CNY5. As of June 2011, the Airport Express is free of charge into the city, but retains the CNY5 fare toward the airport. Note, For frequent users, mild traffic jams during rush hour, mostly in the southern section of the road near Beijing. NE 2nd Ring Road, NE 3rd Ring Road, NE 4th Ring Road, Dashanzi, NE 5th Ring Road, Beigao, Xiaotianzu, the Weigou exit has a gas station close to it
2.
4th Ring Road (Beijing)
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The 4th Ring Road is a controlled-access expressway in Beijing, China which runs around the city, with a radius of approximately 8 kilometres from city centre. The total length of the road is 65.3 kilometres, there are 147 bridges and viaducts that run the length of the Ring Road. The first section, the corridor, was completed in preparation for the 1990 Asian Games. The Ring Road was enclosed in a circle in June 2001. The 4th Ring Road runs within the confines of the city of Beijing, already in the early 1990s, the northern stretch of the 4th Ring Road from Zhongguancun to Siyuan Bridge existed as a ring road, albeit with far narrower road conditions and with traffic lights. Only three flyover viaducts—those at Jianxiang, Anhui Bridge and Siyuan Bridge—existed, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Peoples Republic of China, the eastern stretch of the 4th Ring Road was opened from Siyuan Bridge to Shibalidian around October 1,1999. This was the first part of the road to be opened as an 8-lane expressway. The northern part of the 4th Ring Road from Jianxiang to Siyuan Bridge was converted to an 8-lane expressway in late September 2000, later that year, the southern part from Shibalidian through to Fengtai opened to traffic, as was the case with the northwestern part. By June 2001, the entire 4th Ring Road had been converted into an expressway-standard thoroughfare, in early 2004, the speed limit was reduced to a unified 80 km/h. In September 2004, the 4th Ring Road underwent a massive sign change, exit numberings were unified at last—bidirectionally. A new overpass in the stretch was put into operation in October 2004. 80 km/h, max.100 km/h, second lane, min,70 km/h, max.90 km/h, third lane, min. 60 km/h, max.80 km/h, fourth lane, min,50 km/h, max.80 km/h, auxiliary road, uniform max. speed limit of 70 km/h. Readjusted in 2004 so that all lanes have a uniform min. speed limit of 50 km/h and this express road does not charge tolls. The portion from Jianxiang to Siyuan Bridge, in both directions, is vulnerable to horrible traffic jams. The remainder of the northern and eastern portions are also vulnerable, apart from the Fengtai area, the remainder of the 4th Ring Road has a lesser risk of being clogged up by traffic jams. Siyuan Bridge, Sihui, Sifang Bridge, Shibalidian, Majialou, Fengtai, Yuegezhuang, Zhongguancun, Jianxiang Bridge, no full-scale service areas exist, however, filling stations are plentiful in number. Badaling Expressway, Connects to the Badaling Expressway at Jianxiang, Jingcheng Expressway, Connects to the Jingcheng Expressway at Wanghe Bridge
3.
Beijing
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Beijing is the capital of the Peoples Republic of China and the worlds third most populous city proper. It is also one of the worlds most populous capital cities, the city, located in northern China, is governed as a direct-controlled municipality under the national government with 16 urban, suburban, and rural districts. Beijing is the second largest Chinese city by population after Shanghai and is the nations political, cultural. It is home to the headquarters of most of Chinas largest state-owned companies, and is a hub for the national highway, expressway, railway. The citys history dates back three millennia, as the last of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China, Beijing has been the political centre of the country for much of the past eight centuries. Beijing was the largest city in the world by population for much of the second millennium A. D, the city is renowned for its opulent palaces, temples, parks, gardens, tombs, walls and gates. Its art treasures and universities have made it centre of culture, encyclopædia Britannica notes that few cities in the world have served for so long as the political headquarters and cultural centre of an area as immense as China. Siheyuans, the traditional housing style, and hutongs, the narrow alleys between siheyuans, are major tourist attractions and are common in urban Beijing. The city hosted the 2008 Summer Olympics and was chosen to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, many of Beijings 91 universities consistently rank among the best in China, of which Peking University and Tsinghua University are ranked in the top 60 universities in the world. Beijings Zhongguancun area is known as Chinas Silicon Valley and Chinas center of innovation. According to the 2016 InterNations Expat Insider Survey, Beijing ranked first in Asia in the subcategory Personal Finance Index, expats live primarily in urban districts such as Dongcheng and Chaoyang in the east, or in suburban districts such as Shunyi. Over the past 3,000 years, the city of Beijing has had other names. The name Beijing, which means Northern Capital, was applied to the city in 1403 during the Ming Dynasty to distinguish the city from Nanjing, the English spelling is based on the pinyin romanisation of the two characters as they are pronounced in Standard Mandarin. Those dialects preserve the Middle Chinese pronunciation of 京 as kjaeng, the single Chinese character abbreviation for Beijing is 京, which appears on automobile license plates in the city. The official Latin alphabet abbreviation for Beijing is BJ, the earliest traces of human habitation in the Beijing municipality were found in the caves of Dragon Bone Hill near the village of Zhoukoudian in Fangshan District, where Peking Man lived. Homo erectus fossils from the date to 230,000 to 250,000 years ago. Paleolithic Homo sapiens also lived more recently, about 27,000 years ago. Archaeologists have found neolithic settlements throughout the municipality, including in Wangfujing, the first walled city in Beijing was Ji, a city from the 11th to 7th century BC
4.
Jingjintang Expressway
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Jingjintang Expressway, also known as the Jingtang Expressway, links Beijing via central Tianjin to the Tanggu District in eastern Tianjin. 143 kilometres in length, it crosses the jurisdictions of Beijing and Tianjin municipalities, tolls apply as of Dayangfang near the Eastern 5th Ring Road in Beijing until the Tanggu/TEDA exit. The expressway uses a toll system across all jurisdictions and is managed by Huabei Expressways. This route is now part of G2 Beijing–Shanghai Expressway and Tianjin S40 expressway, the Jingjintang Expressway runs through the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin, as well as Hebei province. Basic Route, Beijing - Langfang - Tianjin, status, The entire expressway is complete. The expressway opened on September 25,1993, and was the first express to be built to more recent standards and this expressway has slashed driving time from Beijing to Tianjin to around one hour, and has created a corridor between Beijing and Tianjin. Areas of the expressway are many times very foggy and that has led to a number of accidents, with a history of over ten years, the expressway is beginning to feel the crunch of massive traffic, especially the incessant onslaught of heavy lorries. As a result, at least two other expressways linking Beijing to Tianjin are planned, a variation of the proposed routes leaves Beijing heading toward Pinggu District, and links with the Jinji Expressway. Uniform maximum speed limit of 110 km/h outside of Beijing, Beijing section now only 90 km/h, however, the Beijing section from Fenzhongsi through Shibalidian has a mixed speed limit of 70 km/h or 80 km/h. Tolls apply for the stretch east of Dayangfang until Tanggu, exception, Beginnings in Beijing has 6 lanes. Drivable, a few portions need more maintenance, portion from central Tianjin to Tanggu seems to be worn down at occasional times. Heavy traffic during weekends and mornings, Fenzhongsi, Dayangfang, Majuqiao, Caiyu, Langfang, Yangcun, Yixingbu, Central Tianjin, Tianjin Airport, Tanggu Majuqiao, Xuguantun, Dongli. As a result of this promotion, the expressway was known as the golden expressway. In November 2004, however, things looked very different, incessant traffic jams, breakdowns, and chaos on the expressway earned it a more popular nickname—the road of death. The very problem lies within the expressway itself—massive traffic, meanwhile, during periods of high use,130,000 vehicles are reported to be using the expressway -- per day. Compounding the problem is a narrow hard shoulder, and the lack of emergency bays. China was a different country back in 1993, when the expressway first opened, for a start, there were fewer drivers, and traffic—especially expressway traffic—was less of a problem. Therefore, when the expressway opened in September 1993, it could cope rather well with just two lanes in one direction—for over a hundred kilometres, things changed in the late 1990s
5.
Jingtong Expressway
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The Jingtong Expressway is an expressway with express road characteristics in Beijing, China which links central Beijing to Tongzhou District. At present, it is approximately 14 km in length, the Jingtong Expressway gets its name by the combination of two one-character Chinese abbreviations of both Beijing and Tongzhou. Travelling along this expressway gives one the impression of urban sprawl at work and the evolution of Beijing at the same time. Some universities sit right next to the expressway, these include the Communication University of China, the Jingtong Expressway runs entirely within the confines of the municipality of Beijing. Basic Route, Beijing Status, The Beijing portion is complete in its entirety, note, The expressway is shown on maps in Beijing to link directly and seamlessly with the Jingha Expressway. This, though, is not the case in reality, instead, several kilometres of non-expressway separate the two expressways after the main toll gate at Ximazhuang, as you enter Tongzhou. The Jingtong expressway was the first highway project built under Build-Operate-Transfer scheme in China, the project was awarded to Lin Tung-Yen China with a 20-year concession period. The expressway was opened to the public in 1996 and this expressway, known as the Jingtong Expressway, connects metropolitan Beijing with Tongzhou District. Its construction was of importance as it quickly sped development in eastern Beijing. The road urbanised suburban Tongzhou, bringing with it an influx of real estate projects. This link finally opened in December 2006, with the remaining bits,80 km/h between Dawang Bridge and Gaobeidian and also between Huicun and Ximazhuang, otherwise,100 km/h. Tolls apply for the stretch Shuangqiao - Tongzhou. Caveat emptor, All destinations are charged a uniform CNY10 rate from the Ximazhuang,6 lanes generally, beginning in central Beijing is wider, ending in Tongzhou District is narrower. Recently repaired sections are excellent, otherwise fair, relatively good, although could be clogged up at times. Sihui, Gaobeidian, Shuangqiao, Huicun, Tongzhou District This express road does not have any service areas, Ring Roads of Beijing, Connects with the E. 4th Ring Road at Sihui and the E. 5th Ring Road at Yuantong Bridge. Jingha Expressway, Section heading for Shanhaiguan links with Jingha Expressway after the Tongzhou Beiguan Roundabout,1, Airport Expressway, Jingjintang Expressway Gaobeidian 5th Ring Road Shuangqiao Shuanghui East Road Ximazhuang or Balizhuang
6.
China
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China, officially the Peoples Republic of China, is a unitary sovereign state in East Asia and the worlds most populous country, with a population of over 1.381 billion. The state is governed by the Communist Party of China and its capital is Beijing, the countrys major urban areas include Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Hong Kong. China is a power and a major regional power within Asia. Chinas landscape is vast and diverse, ranging from forest steppes, the Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir and Tian Shan mountain ranges separate China from much of South and Central Asia. The Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, the third and sixth longest in the world, respectively, Chinas coastline along the Pacific Ocean is 14,500 kilometers long and is bounded by the Bohai, Yellow, East China and South China seas. China emerged as one of the worlds earliest civilizations in the basin of the Yellow River in the North China Plain. For millennia, Chinas political system was based on hereditary monarchies known as dynasties, in 1912, the Republic of China replaced the last dynasty and ruled the Chinese mainland until 1949, when it was defeated by the communist Peoples Liberation Army in the Chinese Civil War. The Communist Party established the Peoples Republic of China in Beijing on 1 October 1949, both the ROC and PRC continue to claim to be the legitimate government of all China, though the latter has more recognition in the world and controls more territory. China had the largest economy in the world for much of the last two years, during which it has seen cycles of prosperity and decline. Since the introduction of reforms in 1978, China has become one of the worlds fastest-growing major economies. As of 2016, it is the worlds second-largest economy by nominal GDP, China is also the worlds largest exporter and second-largest importer of goods. China is a nuclear weapons state and has the worlds largest standing army. The PRC is a member of the United Nations, as it replaced the ROC as a permanent member of the U. N. Security Council in 1971. China is also a member of numerous formal and informal multilateral organizations, including the WTO, APEC, BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the BCIM, the English name China is first attested in Richard Edens 1555 translation of the 1516 journal of the Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa. The demonym, that is, the name for the people, Portuguese China is thought to derive from Persian Chīn, and perhaps ultimately from Sanskrit Cīna. Cīna was first used in early Hindu scripture, including the Mahābhārata, there are, however, other suggestions for the derivation of China. The official name of the state is the Peoples Republic of China. The shorter form is China Zhōngguó, from zhōng and guó and it was then applied to the area around Luoyi during the Eastern Zhou and then to Chinas Central Plain before being used as an occasional synonym for the state under the Qing
7.
Badaling Expressway
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The Badaling Expressway is an expressway in the Peoples Republic of China which links urban Beijing to the Badaling stretch of the Great Wall of China. It continues toward Yanqing and leaves Beijing, becoming the Jingzhang Expressway, starting north of Madian Overpass on the Northern 3rd Ring Road, it runs for approximately 50 kilometres in a direction toward Beijings north-west. The Badaling Expressway gets its name from the Badaling stretch of the Great Wall, the expressway was constructed in January 1996 in three stages, culminating in the creation of a 69.98 kilometre long expressway in September 2001. The previous expressway did not link with the Jingzhang Expressway, after the linking was complete, the stretch to Yanqing and Kangzhuang was opened, and the toll gate at Juyongguan was put out of service soon after. Kilometre sections 49-50 heading out of Beijing are areas where fog may occur, the same applies for the stretch between Shahe and Xisanqi, especially at night. The Valley of Death is a trap and a black spot for traffic accidents. Other speed traps are around the area leaving urban and part of suburban Beijing, before Qinghe Toll Gate, maximum 80 km/h, after Qinghe Toll Gate, maximum 100 km/h. In cases of rain, snow or fog, a speed limit of 60 km/h for the stretch southeast of Nankou applies. Most bridges southeast of Nankou have a speed limit of 80 km/h but this is neglected by all. CNY0. 5/km as of 5th Ring Road intersection for sections south of the toll gate, entire stretch north of the 5th Ring Road to Kangzhuang costs CNY35. Networked with 6th Ring Road toll system, but not with Jingzhang Expressway system,6 lanes from Madian - Nankou,4 lanes thereafter. Good, portions further north are better, mainly concentrated in Madian - Huilongguan section. Shangqing Bridge is a traffic bottleneck, warning, Horrendous traffic jams can clog up to the extent that the stretch from Madian to Jianxiang can become a three-lane car park during rush hour. For the stretch after that until the Qinghe Toll Gate, the part of the expressway can get clogged up with vehicles leaving the expressway. During both rush hour periods, the Huilongguan exit is likely to form a huge traffic line. Beijing Section, N. 3rd Ring Road, N. 4th Ring Road, N. 5th Ring Road, Huilongguan, N. 6th Ring Road, Changping, Nankou, one for both directions near Xisanqi and near Baige/Changping. Ring Roads of Beijing, Connects with the N. 3rd Ring Road at Madian, the N. 4th Ring Road at Jianxiang Bridge, the N. 5th Ring Road at Qinghe, Jingzhang Expressway, Becomes the Jingzhang Expressway west of the City Boundary toll gate. The expressway, of course, passes by the Great Wall of China in the Badaling region, as a result, it offers three exits which are linked immediately with the Great Wall
8.
6th Ring Road (Beijing)
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The 6th Ring Road is an expressway ring road in Beijing, China which runs around the city approximately 15–20 kilometres from the centre of the city. The 6th Ring Road is approximately 220 kilometres long, the road is numbered G4501 and as such is strictly speaking considered a peripheral segment of the G45 Daqing-Guangzhou Expressway. The full circle of the Sixth Ring Road was opened for traffic in September 12,2009. The 6th Ring Road runs within the confines of the municipality of Beijing and it is one of the most circular routes but still remarkably rectangular. The expressway ring road is the one to link with the equally remote Tongyan Expressway. As early as 2000 or 2001, the stretch from Sanhui Bridge through to Majuqiao was put into operation. By 2002, a road starting in Xishatun through to Sanhui Bridge, as well as a stretch from Majuqiao through to Huangcun/Shuangyuan Bridge, were complete. Another 43 km of the ring road opened behind schedule. They were slated for a November 2004 opening, in the first case, the expressway was opened on December 20,2004, at 14,00 local time, with over a months delay. The entire road was opened in 2010, the minimum speed limit of 50 km/h, maximum 100 km/h, throughout. Potential speed checks at Zhangjiawan and 500 metres to the east of Yongdingmen/Langfang exit, otherwise and it is not rare for passenger cars to zip well in excess of that speed limit, while to see lorries underperform in speed. CNY0. 5/km, minimum charge of CNY5, based on price for a passenger vehicle. There have been calls to all toll gates within the confines of, and including. However, little to no action has taken on this matter. The 6th Ring Road is linked with Jingshi, Jingcheng, the traffic is usually very smooth, however, on weekends, tourists flock to suburban districts causing occasional traffic jams. The exit at Baige Bridge is also usually jammed due to heavy presence at the exit. Car crashes also cause rare traffic jams, G45 Daqing–Guangzhou Expressway, Huangcun, Shuangyuan Bridge, Gaoliying G4 Beijing–Hong Kong–Macau Expressway, Liyuan Bridge Badaling Expressway, Xishatun. At a distance of 20 kilometres from the centre of town, equally large is the distance between two points
9.
Taiwan
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Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, is a state in East Asia. Neighbours include China to the west, Japan to the northeast, Taiwan is the most populous state that is not a member of the United Nations, and the one with the largest economy. The island of Taiwan, also known as Formosa, was inhabited by Taiwanese aborigines before the 17th century. After a brief rule by the Kingdom of Tungning, the island was annexed by the Qing dynasty, the Qing ceded Taiwan to Japan in 1895 after the Sino-Japanese War. While Taiwan was under Japanese rule, the Republic of China was established on the mainland in 1912 after the fall of the Qing dynasty, following the Japanese surrender to the Allies in 1945, the ROC took control of Taiwan. However, the resumption of the Chinese Civil War led to the ROCs loss of the mainland to the Communists, and the flight of the ROC government to Taiwan in 1949. As a founding member of the United Nations, the ROC continued to represent China at the United Nations until 1971, in the early 1960s, Taiwan entered a period of rapid economic growth and industrialization, creating a stable industrial economy. In the 1980s and early 1990s, it changed from a one-party military dictatorship dominated by the Kuomintang to a multi-party democracy with universal suffrage, Taiwan is the 22nd-largest economy in the world, and its high-tech industry plays a key role in the global economy. It is ranked highly in terms of freedom of the press, health care, public education, economic freedom, the PRC has consistently claimed sovereignty over Taiwan and asserted the ROC is no longer in legitimate existence. Under its One-China Policy the PRC refused diplomatic relations with any country that recognizes the ROC, the PRC has threatened the use of military force in response to any formal declaration of independence by Taiwan or if PRC leaders decide that peaceful unification is no longer possible. There are various names for the island of Taiwan in use today, the former name Formosa dates from 1542, when Portuguese sailors sighted the main island of Taiwan and named it Ilha Formosa, which means beautiful island. The name Formosa eventually replaced all others in European literature and was in use in English in the early 20th century. This name was adopted into the Chinese vernacular as the name of the sandbar. The modern word Taiwan is derived from this usage, which is seen in forms in Chinese historical records. Use of the current Chinese name was formalized as early as 1684 with the establishment of Taiwan Prefecture, through its rapid development, the entire Formosan mainland eventually became known as Taiwan. The official name of the state is the Republic of China and it was a member of the United Nations representing China until 1971, when it lost its seat to the Peoples Republic of China. Over subsequent decades, the Republic of China has become known as Taiwan. In some contexts, especially ones from the ROC government
10.
Shanghai
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Shanghai is the most populous city proper in the world, with a population of more than 24 million as of 2014. As one of the four direct-controlled municipalities of the Peoples Republic of China, it is a financial centre and transport hub. Located in the Yangtze River Delta in East China, Shanghai sits on the edge of the mouth of the Yangtze in the middle portion of the eastern Chinese coast. The municipality borders the provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the north, south and west, as a major administrative, shipping and trading city, Shanghai grew in importance in the 19th century due to trade and recognition of its favourable port location and economic potential. The city was one of five treaty ports forced open to foreign trade following the British victory over China in the First Opium War, the subsequent 1842 Treaty of Nanking and 1844 Treaty of Whampoa allowed the establishment of the Shanghai International Settlement and the French Concession. The city then flourished as a center of commerce between China and other parts of the world, and became the financial hub of the Asia-Pacific region in the 1930s. However, with the Communist Party takeover of the mainland in 1949, trade was limited to other socialist countries, and the citys global influence declined. In the 1990s, the reforms introduced by Deng Xiaoping resulted in an intense re-development of the city, aiding the return of finance. The two Chinese characters in the name are 上 and 海, together meaning Upon-the-Sea. The earliest occurrence of this dates from the 11th-century Song Dynasty, at which time there was already a river confluence. There are disputes as to exactly how the name should be understood, Shanghai is officially abbreviated 沪 in Chinese, a contraction of 沪渎, a 4th- or 5th-century Jin name for the mouth of Suzhou Creek when it was the main conduit into the ocean. This character appears on all motor vehicle license plates issued in the municipality today, another alternative name for Shanghai is Shēn or Shēnchéng, from Lord Chunshen, a third-century BC nobleman and prime minister of the state of Chu, whose fief included modern Shanghai. Sports teams and newspapers in Shanghai often use Shen in their names, such as Shanghai Shenhua F. C. Huating was another early name for Shanghai. In AD751, during the dynasty, Huating County was established at modern-day Songjiang. Today, Huating appears as the name of a hotel in the city. The city also has various nicknames in English, including Pearl of the Orient, during the Spring and Autumn period, the Shanghai area belonged to the Kingdom of Wu, which was conquered by the Kingdom of Yue, which in turn was conquered by the Kingdom of Chu. During the Warring States period, Shanghai was part of the fief of Lord Chunshen of Chu and he ordered the excavation of the Huangpu River. Its former or poetic name, the Chunshen River, gave Shanghai its nickname of Shen, two important events helped promote Shanghais development in the Ming dynasty
11.
Taipei
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Taipei, officially known as Taipei City, is the capital city and a special municipality of the Republic of China. Sitting at the tip of the island, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City. It is about 25 km southwest of the port city Keelung. Since 1949, Taipei has been the capital of the ROC after losing the mainland to the Communists in the Chinese Civil War, the name Taipei can refer either to the whole metropolitan area or the city proper. Taipei is the political, economic, educational, and cultural center of Taiwan, considered to be a global city, Taipei is part of a major high-tech industrial area. Railways, high-speed rail, highways, airports, and bus lines connect Taipei with all parts of the island, the city is served by two airports – Taipei Songshan and Taiwan Taoyuan. Its natural features such as Maokong, Yangmingshan, and hot springs are also known to international visitors. As the capital city, Taipei is sometimes used as a synecdoche for Taiwan, prior to the significant influx of Han Chinese immigrants, the region of Taipei Basin was mainly inhabited by the Ketagalan plains aborigines. The number of Han immigrants gradually increased in the early 18th century under Qing Dynasty rule after the government began permitting development in the area, in 1875, the northern part of the island was incorporated into the new Taipeh Prefecture. The Qing dynasty of China made Taipeh the temporary capital of Fujian-Taiwan Province in 1886 when Taiwan was separated from Fujian Province, Taipeh was formally made the provincial capital in 1894. Japan acquired Taiwan in 1895 under the Treaty of Shimonoseki after the First Sino-Japanese War, Taiwan became a colony of Imperial Japan with Taihoku as its capital, in which the city was administered under Taihoku Prefecture. Taiwans Japanese rulers embarked on a program of advanced urban planning that featured extensive railroad links. A number of Taipei landmarks and cultural institutions date from this period, following the Japanese surrender of 1945, control of Taiwan was handed to the Republic of China. In 1990 Taipei provided the backdrop for the Wild Lily student rallies that moved Taiwanese society from one-party rule to multi-party democracy, the city is today home to Taiwans democratically elected national government. The region known as the Taipei Basin was home to Ketagalan tribes before the eighteenth century, Han Chinese mainly from Fujian Province of Qing dynasty China began to settle in the Taipei Basin in 1709. In 1875, the part of Taiwan was separated from Taiwan Prefecture. From 1875 until the beginning of Japanese rule in 1895, Taipei was part of Tamsui County of Taipeh Prefecture, in 1885, work commenced to create an independent Taiwan Province, and Taipei City was temporarily made the provincial capital. Taipei officially became the capital of Taiwan in 1894, all that remains from the Qing era is the north gate
12.
Kunming
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Kunming is the capital of and largest city in Yunnan Province, Southwest China. Kunming is also called the Spring city due to its weather, the headquarters of many of Yunnans large businesses are in Kunming. It was important during World War II as a Chinese military center, American air base, located in the middle of the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau, Kunming is located at an altitude of 1,900 metres above sea level and at a latitude just north of the Tropic of Cancer. Kunming consists of an old, previously walled city, a commercial district, residential. The city has an observatory, and its institutions of higher learning include Yunnan University, Yunnan Normal University. On the outskirts is a bronze temple, dating from the Ming dynasty. Its economic importance derives from its geographical position, positioned near the border with Southeastern Asian countries, serving as a transportation hub in Southwest China, linking by rail to Vietnam and by road to Burma and Laos. This positioning also makes it an important trade center in this region of the nation and it also houses some manufacturing, chiefly copper, though some other chemicals, machinery, textiles, paper and cement take key. Though having a nearly 2,400 year history, its prosperity dates only from 1910. The city has continued to develop rapidly under Chinas modernization efforts, Kunmings streets have widened while office buildings and housing projects develop at a fast pace. Kunming has been designated a special tourism center and as such sports a proliferation of high-rises, Kunming will be the hub and terminus for the Pan Asia High Speed Network using high speed trains to connect China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Because of the establishment of National Southwestern Associated University, Kunming was usually regarded as the bulwark of modern China democracy during The Second Sino-Japanese War, Kunming long profited from its position on the caravan roads through to South-East Asia, India and Tibet. Early townships in the edge of Lake Dianchi can be dated back to 279 BC. Early settlements in the area around Lake Dian date back to Neolithic times, the Dian Kingdom, whose original language was likely related to Tibeto-Burman languages was also established near the area. Dian was subjugated by the Chinese Han dynasty under the reign of Emperor Wu of Han in 109 BC, the Han dynasty incorporated the territory of the Dian Kingdom into their Yizhou Commandery, but left the King of Dian as the local ruler. During the Sui dynasty, two expeditions were launched against the area, and it was renamed Kunzhou in Chinese sources. Founded in 765, Kunming was known to the Chinese as Tuodong city in the Kingdom of Nanzhao during the 8th and 9th centuries, Tuodong later became part of the successor Kingdom of Dali. Eventually this changed when Tuodong came under the control of the Yuan dynasty invasion of the southwest in 1252–1253, in 1276 it was founded by the Mongol rulers as Kunming County and became the provincial capital of Yunnan
13.
Hong Kong
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Hong Kong, officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China, is an autonomous territory on the Pearl River Delta of East Asia. Macau lies across the delta to the west, and the Chinese province of Guangdong borders the territory to the north. With a total area of 1,106 square kilometres. Hong Kong was later occupied by Japan during World War II until British control resumed in 1945, under the principle of one country, two systems, Hong Kong maintains a separate political and economic system from China. Except in military defence and foreign affairs, Hong Kong maintains its independent executive, legislative, in addition, Hong Kong develops relations directly with foreign states and international organisations in a broad range of appropriate fields. Hong Kong is one of the worlds most significant financial centres, with the highest Financial Development Index score and consistently ranks as the worlds most competitive and freest economic entity. As the worlds 8th largest trading entity, its legal tender, Hong Kongs tertiary sector dominated economy is characterised by simple taxation with a competitive level of corporate tax and supported by its independent judiciary system. However, while Hong Kong has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world and it has a very high Human Development Index ranking and the worlds longest life expectancy. Over 90% of the population use of well-developed public transportation. Seasonal air pollution with origins from neighbouring areas of Mainland China. Hong Kong was officially recorded in the 1842 Treaty of Nanking to encompass the entirety of the island, before 1842, the name referred to a small inlet—now Aberdeen Harbour, literally means Little Hong Kong)—between Aberdeen Island and the southern coast of Hong Kong Island. Aberdeen was a point of contact between British sailors and local fishermen. Detailed and accurate romanisation systems for Cantonese were available and in use at the time, fragrance may refer to the sweet taste of the harbours fresh water estuarine influx of the Pearl River or to the incense from factories lining the coast of northern Kowloon. The incense was stored near Aberdeen Harbour for export before Hong Kong developed Victoria Harbour, the name had often been written as the single word Hongkong until the government adopted the current form in 1926. Nevertheless, a number of century-old institutions still retain the form, such as the Hongkong Post, Hongkong Electric. As of 1997, its name is the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China. This is the title as mentioned in the Hong Kong Basic Law. Hong Kong has carried many nicknames, the most famous among those is the Pearl of the Orient, which reflected the impressive nightscape of the citys light decorations on the skyscrapers along both sides of the Victoria Harbour
14.
Macau
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Macau, also spelled Macao, officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the Peoples Republic of China, is an autonomous territory on the western side of the Pearl River Delta in East Asia. Macau is bordered by the city of Zhuhai in Mainland China to the north, Hong Kong lies about 64 kilometres to its east across the Delta. With a population of 650,900 living in an area of 30.5 km2, Macau was administered by the Portuguese Empire and its inheritor states from the mid-16th century until late 1999, when it constituted the last remaining European colony in Asia. Portuguese traders first settled in Macau in the 1550s, in 1557, Macau was leased to Portugal from Ming China as a trading port. The Portuguese Empire administered the city under Chinese authority and sovereignty until 1887, sovereignty over Macau was transferred back to China on 20 December 1999. The Joint Declaration on the Question of Macau and Macau Basic Law stipulate that Macau operate with a degree of autonomy until at least 2049. Macau participates in international organizations and events that do not require members to national sovereignty. Macau is a city in Southern China, known for its casinos. Its gaming revenue has been the worlds largest since 2006, with the heavily dependent on gaming. According to The World Factbook, Macau has the fourth highest life expectancy in the world, the present Chinese name means Inlet Gates. Macau is otherwise known in Chinese as Haojing or Jinghai, the name Macau is thought to be derived from the A-Ma Temple, a temple built in 1448 dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of seafarers and fishermen. It is said that when the Portuguese sailors landed at the coast just outside the temple and asked the name of the place, the Portuguese then named the peninsula Macau. The history of Macau is traced back to the Qin dynasty, the first recorded Chinese inhabitants of the area were people seeking refuge in Macau from invading Mongols during the Southern Song. Under the Ming dynasty, fishermen migrated to Macau from Guangdong, the Macau native people were Tanka boat people. Macau did not develop as a settlement until the Portuguese arrived in the 16th century. In 1513, Jorge Álvares became the first Portuguese to land in China, in 1535, Portuguese traders obtained the rights to anchor ships in Macaus harbours and to carry out trading activities, though not the right to stay onshore. In 1557, the Portuguese established a permanent settlement in Macau, the Portuguese continued to pay an annual tribute up to 1863 in order to stay in Macau. By 1564, Portugal commanded western trade with India, Japan, but their pride was damaged by the indifference with which the Chinese treated them
15.
Lhasa
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Lhasa is a city and administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region of the Peoples Republic of China. Lhasa is the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau after Xining and, at an altitude of 3,490 metres, the city has been the religious and administrative capital of Tibet since the mid-17th century. It contains many culturally significant Tibetan Buddhist sites such as the Potala Palace, Jokhang Temple, Lhasa literally means place of the gods. Lhasa is first recorded as the name, referring to the temple of Jowo. By the mid 7th century, Songtsän Gampo became the leader of the Tibetan Empire that had risen to power in the Brahmaputra River Valley, Bhrikuti is said to have converted him to Buddhism, which was also the faith attributed to his second wife Wencheng. In 641 he constructed the Jokhang and Ramoche Temples in Lhasa in order to house two Buddha statues, the Akshobhya Vajra and the Jowo Sakyamuni, respectively brought to his court by the princesses. Lhasa suffered extensive damage under the reign of Langdarma in the 9th century, when the sites were destroyed and desecrated. A Tibetan tradition mentions that after Songtsän Gampos death in 649 C. E. Chinese troops captured Lhasa, Chinese and Tibetan scholars have noted that the event is mentioned neither in the Chinese annals nor in the Tibetan manuscripts of Dunhuang. Lǐ suggested that this tradition may derive from an interpolation, tsepon W. D. Shakabpa believes that those histories reporting the arrival of Chinese troops are not correct. From the fall of the monarchy in the 9th century to the accession of the 5th Dalai Lama, however, the importance of Lhasa as a religious site became increasingly significant as the centuries progressed. It was known as the centre of Tibet where Padmasambhava magically pinned down the earth demoness, islam has been present since the 11th century in what is considered to have always been a monolithically Buddhist culture. Two Tibetan Muslim communities have lived in Lhasa with distinct homes, food and clothing, language, education, trade, by the 15th century, the city of Lhasa had risen to prominence following the founding of three large Gelugpa monasteries by Je Tsongkhapa and his disciples. The three monasteries are Ganden, Sera and Drepung which were built as part of the puritanical Buddhist revival in Tibet, the scholarly achievements and political know-how of this Gelugpa Lineage eventually pushed Lhasa once more to centre stage. The 5th Dalai Lama, Lobsang Gyatso, unified Tibet and moved the centre of his administration to Lhasa in 1642 with the help of Güshi Khan of the Khoshut. With Güshi Khan as a largely uninvolved overlord, the 5th Dalai Lama, the core leadership of this government is also referred to as the Ganden Phodrang, and Lhasa thereafter became both the religious and political capital. In 1645, the reconstruction of the Potala Palace began on Red Hill, in 1648, the Potrang Karpo of the Potala was completed, and the Potala was used as a winter palace by the Dalai Lama from that time onwards. The Potrang Marpo was added between 1690 and 1694, the name Potala is derived from Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the Dalai Lamas divine prototype, the Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. The Jokhang Temple was also expanded around this time
16.
Harbin
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Harbin is the capital and largest city of Heilongjiang province in the northeastern region of the Peoples Republic of China. Holding sub-provincial administrative status, Harbin has direct jurisdiction over nine metropolitan districts, Harbin is the eighth most populous Chinese city and the most populous city in Northeast China. According to the 2010 census, the area made of seven out of nine urban districts had 5,282,093 inhabitants. Harbin serves as a key political, economic, scientific, cultural, Harbin, which was originally a Manchu word meaning a place for drying fishing nets, grew from a small rural settlement on the Songhua River to become one of the largest cities in Northeast China. Founded in 1898 with the coming of the Chinese Eastern Railway, having the most bitterly cold winters among major Chinese cities, Harbin is heralded as the Ice City for its well-known winter tourism and recreations. Harbin is notable for its ice sculpture festival in the winter. Besides being well known for its historical Russian legacy, the city serves as an important gateway in Sino-Russian trade today, in the 1920s, the city was considered Chinas fashion capital since new designs from Paris and Moscow reached here first before arriving in Shanghai. The city has been voted China Top Tourist City by China National Tourism Administration in 2004, on 22 June 2010, Harbin was appointed a City of Music by the UN. Human settlement in the Harbin area dates from at least 2200 BC during the late Stone Age, Wanyan Aguda, the founder and first emperor of the Jin dynasty, was born in the Jurchen Wanyan tribes who resided near the Ashi River in this region. In AD1115 Aguda established Jins capital Shangjing Huining Prefecture in todays Acheng District of Harbin, after Agudas death, the new emperor Wanyan Sheng ordered the construction of a new city on a uniform plan. The planning and construction emulated major Chinese cities, in particular Bianjing, Huining Prefecture served as the first superior capital of the Jin empire until Wanyan Liang moved the capital to Yanjing in 1153. Liang even went so far as to destroy all palaces in his capital in 1157. Wanyan Liangs successor Wanyan Yong restored the city and established it as a capital in 1173. Ruins of the Shangjing Huining Prefecture were discovered and excavated about 2 km from present-day Achengs central urban area, the site of the old Jin capital ruins is a national historic reserve, and includes the Jin Dynasty History Museum. The museum, open to the public, was renovated in late 2005, mounted statues of Aguda and of his chief commander Wanyan Zonghan stand in the grounds of the museum. Many of the artifacts there are on display in nearby Harbin. After the Mongol conquest of the Jin Empire, Huining Prefecture was abandoned, in the 17th century, the Manchus used building materials from Huining Prefecture to construct their new stronghold in Alchuka. The region of Harbin remained largely rural until the 1800s, with ten villages
17.
Three Links
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The Three Links were officially established on 15 December 2008, with the commencement of direct flights, shipping and post. In December 1978 after Deng Xiaoping and his supporters won the Third Plenum of the 11th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and this also began a new direction in the PRCs foreign policy. On January 1,1979 Beijing proposed the Three Links of postal, commercial and it was also proposed together with the Four flows/Four exchanges which included relatives, tourists, academic groups, cultural groups and sports representatives. This was greeted in Taiwan by Republic of China President Chiang Ching-kuo’s Three Noes, while the PRC and ROC agreed in principle on opening the Three Links, there were overriding concerns. According to the Mainland Affairs Council of the ROC, the major obstacle resided in the PRCs One-China position which does not recognize the sovereignty of the ROC. The Council stated that the Three links would only be considered when the PRC stopped its animosity against ROC sovereignty, the PRC government considers the cross-strait flights as domestic flights, according to the One China Policy. However, the ROCs Democratic Progressive Party government in Taiwan regarded this position the same as recognising Taiwan as a part of the PRC and thus would compromise the ROC sovereignty. The previous administration led by President Chen Shui-bian, who was in power from 2000 to 2008, was keen to establish direct links under his four noes and one without pledge. In 2004, Beijing announced a cross-strait controlled-access highway project linking Beijing to Taipei connecting the two sides of the Taiwan Straits together, however, due to the potential technical difficulties, some people in Taipei consider this move as political propaganda. The Three Links are mentioned in the Anti-Secession Law of the Peoples Republic of China, under the Democratic Progressive Party government, gradual steps were taken to lift restrictions on the three links. When introduced in January 2001, they allowed only those with household registrations in Kinmen and Matsu to use the trade links, travels must be done in groups. Restrictions were lifted to allow individual travelers, as well as to open the routes to residents and relatives of Kinmen. Quanzhou was also added to the list in the same year, the ferry trip, which takes as little as 20 minutes, involved regular routes connecting Kinmen to the ports of Xiamen and Quanzhou, and Matsu to Mawei. Occasional trips were made between Kinmen and Meizhou, a popular religious site. The routes saw 21,377 entries and exits in 2001 and it ballooned to 341,152 in 2006, but still represents a small part of overall trade. The two sides agreed to permit cross-strait flights for the Chinese New Year of Rooster in 2005, unlike the 2003 flights, the 2005 flights did not have to touch down in Hong Kong or Macau, but still must enter its airspace. The first direct flights from China to Taiwan since 1949 arrived in Taipei on January 29,2005. Shortly afterwards, a China Airlines carrier landed in Beijing, airports on both sides saw ceremonial displays on the arrival of the first passengers, with dancing lions and dragons, and officials making speeches
18.
Badaling
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Badaling is the site of the most visited section of the Great Wall of China, approximately 80 kilometres northwest of urban Beijing city in Yanqing District, which is within the Beijing municipality. The portion of the running through the site was built in 1504 during the Ming Dynasty. The highest point of Badaling is Beibalou, approximately 1,015 metres above sea level, Badaling Great Wall was built in the Ming Dynasty to occupy a commanding and strategic position for protecting the Juyongguan Pass on its south, further protecting the city of Beijing. The portion of the wall at Badaling has undergone restoration, now visited annually by millions, the immediate area has seen significant development, including hotels, restaurants, and a cable car. The recently completed Badaling Expressway connects Badaling with central Beijing, line S2, Beijing Suburban Railway, served people who wanted to go to the Great Wall from Beijing North Railway Station. People can buy tickets at Beijing North Railway Station to Badaling Station, the 877 bus runs frequently between Deshengmen Bus Station and Badaling. It was here that President Richard Nixon and his wife, accompanied by Vice Premier Li Xiannian, visited on February 24,1972, many other world leaders have made a trip to the site including Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. Badaling and the expressway were the site of the circuit of the Urban Road Cycling Course in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Laps of the circuit passed through gates in the wall, official website Badaling Section of the Great Wall at Wikivoyage. org
19.
Great Wall of China
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Several walls were being built as early as the 7th century BC, these, later joined together and made bigger and stronger, are now collectively referred to as the Great Wall. Especially famous is the wall built 220–206 BC by Qin Shi Huang, since then, the Great Wall has been rebuilt, maintained, and enhanced, the majority of the existing wall is from the Ming Dynasty. The Great Wall stretches from Dandong in the east to Lop Lake in the west, a comprehensive archaeological survey, using advanced technologies, has concluded that the Ming walls measure 8,850 km. This is made up of 6,259 km sections of wall,359 km of trenches and 2,232 km of natural defensive barriers such as hills. Another archaeological survey found that the wall with all of its branches measure out to be 21,196 km. The collection of fortifications now known as The Great Wall of China has historically had a number of different names in both Chinese and English. The Chinese character 城 is a compound of the place or earth radical 土 and 成. The longer Chinese name Ten-Thousand-Mile Long Wall came from Sima Qians description of it in the Records, though he did not name the walls as such. The AD493 Book of Song quotes the frontier general Tan Daoji referring to the wall of 10,000 miles, closer to the modern name. Since Chinas metrication in 1930, it has been equivalent to 500 metres or 1,600 feet. However, this use of ten-thousand is figurative in a manner to the Greek and English myriad. Because of the association with the First Emperors supposed tyranny. Instead, various terms were used in records, including frontier, rampart, barrier, the outer fortresses. Poetic and informal names for the wall included the Purple Frontier, only during the Qing period did Long Wall become the catch-all term to refer to the many border walls regardless of their location or dynastic origin, equivalent to the English Great Wall. The current English name evolved from accounts of the Chinese wall from early modern European travelers, by the 19th century, The Great Wall of China had become standard in English, French, and German, although other European languages continued to refer to it as the Chinese wall. The Chinese were already familiar with the techniques of wall-building by the time of the Spring, during this time and the subsequent Warring States period, the states of Qin, Wei, Zhao, Qi, Yan, and Zhongshan all constructed extensive fortifications to defend their own borders. Built to withstand the attack of small arms such as swords and spears, king Zheng of Qin conquered the last of his opponents and unified China as the First Emperor of the Qin dynasty in 221 BC. Intending to impose centralized rule and prevent the resurgence of feudal lords, to position the empire against the Xiongnu people from the north, however, he ordered the building of new walls to connect the remaining fortifications along the empires northern frontier
20.
Yanqing District
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Yanqing District is a subdivision of the municipality of Beijing located northwest of the city proper of Beijing. The county consists of 11 towns and 4 rural townships, there are 3 subdistricts,11 towns, and 1 township in the district, The Jingbao Railway, Dazhen Railway, and China National Highway 110 pass through the district. Yanqing is currently served by one commuter line operated by BCR, BCR Line S2 - Badaling, Yanqing BCR Line S2 - Badaling, Kangzhuang The district has an area of 1,992 km2 and a population of 275,433. The district contains many ancient tombs and caves, as well as the popular Badaling section of the Great Wall, the urban area of Yanqing has an area of 9.8 km2 and an estimated population of 100,000. Media related to Yanqing District at Wikimedia Commons
21.
Madian, Beijing
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Madian is a community in Haidian District, northern Beijing. It is adjacent to the intersection of the 3rd Ring Road, two separate street administrative offices serve portions of Madian. A complex overpass links the northern segment of the 3rd Ring Road with a route coming from Deshengmen on the 2nd Ring Road through to the Badaling Expressway. Madian historically had a Hui population, and the 3, 000-square-metre Madian Mosque is located in the community, Madian Bridge has been expanded twice to create two direct links to the expressway. A few years ago, the route to Deshengmen was expanded and is now a city express route, Wenfei Wang, Shangyi Zhou, and C. During the Yuan Dynasty Madian was within the Beijing city wall, after the wall was rebuilt during the Ming Dynasty, Madian was outside of the city wall. Wenfei Wang, Shangyi Zhou, and Cindy Fan stated that according to records the first Hui arrived in Madian during the reign of the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. Turmoil in northwestern China during the Qing Dynasty caused many Hui to move eastward, a population of Hui, mostly horse and sheep traders, settled in Madian due to its access to horse and sheep trading routes. Therefore, a trading market in horses and sheep was established there. Kangxi built the Madian Mosque in 1662, Wenfei Wang, Shangyi Zhou, and Cindy Fan had interviewed an administrator of the mosque, who stated that the mosque probably opened due to a pre-existing Hui population. Around the 1930s, traders of pigs and pork detoured around Madian because it was homogeneously Muslim, the head of a resident committee interviewed by Wenfei Wang, Shangyi Zhou, and Cindy Fan in August 2000 stated that Madian was over 90% Muslim in the 1950s. In the late 1950s, the community received an influx of people displaced by the construction of the Great Hall of the People, in the initial years after the founding of the Peoples Republic in 1949 new housing developments appeared in Madian. Due to its accessible to other areas, Madian was selected as a place for the development of new housing. Apartments were built in the place of the slaughterhouse and sheep market after those facilities were demolished, Han people moved into the apartments, causing the percentage of Hui people to decrease. Weiping Wu and Piper Gaubatz, authors of The Chinese City, the resident head stated that in the 1980s fewer than 30% of the people in Madian were Muslim. Gladney, author of Muslim Chinese, Ethnic Nationalism in the Peoples Republic, in the decades before 2002 the expansion of highways and roads further changed the character of Madian. Many Hui left Madian when the Dechang Road was constructed in the 1980s and this road later became a part of the Badaling Expressway. In the 1990s developers started renovation projects in Madian because of its location along the 3rd Ring Road, in 1993 the renovation of the Yulanyuan had been completed
22.
3rd Ring Road (Beijing)
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The 3rd Ring Road is a 48-kilometre city ring road that encircles the centre of the city of Beijing. When Beijing first became the capital of the Peoples Republic of China, the road existed only in segments encircling the northern, eastern, at the time, it was known as Beihuan, Donghuan, and Nanhuan. The 3rd Ring Road was finally finished in 1994 with the completion of the western segment, there are 52 flyovers, including Sanyuanqiao, which links it to the Airport Expressway. The speed limit is a uniform 80 km/h, the ring road runs through the busy CBD section in the east through Panjiayuan and Fenzhongsi, linking up with the Jingjintang Expressway. It continues south toward Muxiyuan and Yuquanying, linking up with the Jingkai Expressway, the northern segment is equally busy, running through Beitaipingzhuang, with links to the Badaling Expressway and the Jingcheng Expressway. Line 10 of the Beijing Subway has been constructed under the segments of the 3rd Ring Road and was completed in 2008. The 3rd Ring Road is notorious for its traffic jams, the eastern segment, which runs through Beijings central business district, is regularly gridlocked during rush hour. The interchanges of this segment are modified diamond interchanges, consisting of openings of the barrier on the right that separates the main lanes from the frontage roads. These interchanges can often back up traffic since they easily handle the huge traffic volumes of Beijing. The situation is worsened by the bus stops that are located right adjacent to the exits. The 3rd Ring Road is 2.5 kilometres from the 2nd Ring Road and 5 kilometres from the city centre, the 3rd Ring Road goes through mostly residential and some commercial areas that were created during Beijings first wave of rapid expansion. Before 2003, the entire 3rd Ring Road was very bumpy, following the renovation of the 2nd Ring Road in 2001, a renovation project similar to that of the aforementioned road was conducted in 2003 and the road surface has been much smoother since then
23.
Shangqing Bridge
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Shangqing Bridge is an overpass in Beijing. It is an intersection where the stretch of the 5th Ring Road. Before tolls on the 5th Ring Road were abolished in early 2004, however, as of 2004, it has become a major focus point, as the bridge is, more often than not, home to stunning traffic jams. The problem is that vehicles switching expressways must pick up a card when heading in either direction. For cars heading toward the Badaling Expressway from the 5th Ring Road, however, the problem is significant for cars entering the 5th Ring Road from the Badaling Expressway, where tolls must be paid before the vehicle enters the 5th Ring Road. The heart of the problem is that the two parts of the bridge stretching into the 5th Ring Road consist of only one lane. Even if cars were to occupy the emergency lane simultaneously, that would amount to only two lanes—insufficient space, as a result, long lines at Shangqing Bridge are routine. It is not uncommon to see the two parts of Shangqing Bridge stretching into the 5th Ring Road jam-packed with vehicles. A few months into 2004, the authorities banned lorries over 2 t in weight from the bridge, for fear that Shangqing Bridge might collapse, on September 16,2004, further actions were taken. Lorries heading for the stretch of the N. 5th Ring Road were simply to be denied access. All affected traffic is rerouted using the 6th Ring Road, placing longer travel routes, all lorries over 2 t can only enter areas inside of the 6th Ring Road during the night. This measure, although easy to dismiss as extreme, actually takes a bit of credit. Lorries stockpiling on the bridge is a scene reserved now only during peak hours, although the very issue of traffic jams is yet to be fully solved, the measure is a step towards solving it. Meanwhile, the bridge is saved from collapse. Despite this, public opinion is rather negative on the situation at Shangqing Bridge. Calls for the repositioning of the gates and the addition of further toll gates have been mounting upon Shoufa. The authorities and Shoufa respond by saying that technical and physical constraints are the major obstacle, still, the problem is mitigated with the addition of a few more toll gates—although only in a line. To solve the problem, some toll officials now collect tolls by actually walking to cars in the line and collecting tolls and this somewhat alleviates the problem, even though the core of the problem is still existent to this day
24.
5th Ring Road (Beijing)
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It takes the form of an expressway and is 98 kilometres in length. Being a ring road, it has no natural start or end point, although the 0 km mark is found near the stretch at Laiguangying. The expressway ring road is a road in Beijing municipality. All of Beijings expressways, except for the Tongyan Expressway, are interlinked with the 5th Ring Road, portions of the expressway have a maximum speed limit of 90 km/h, with the remainder imposing a speed limit of 100 km/h. There is a minimum speed limit of 50 km/h. The 5th ring road has three lanes in each direction, for a total of six lanes, the route was originally called the 1st Expressway Ring Road, as it would take the form of an expressway, and therefore become the citys first expressway ring road. Therefore, it was renamed the 5th Ring Road, after some debate, work began soon after and the first portion of the ring road opened in 2001, linking the Badaling Expressway with the Airport Expressway. Further stretches of the road were soon opened, by mid-2003, half of the ring road was open, from the western end connecting the West Changan Avenue to the interchange in the southeast with the Jingjintang Expressway. The ring road was completed in its entirety on November 1,2003, with the intersections with the Jingshi Expressway, also completed on that same day was the Xiaoyue Tunnel—noticeable for being the only tunnel on any of the 5 Ring Roads of Beijing. The 5th Ring Road is home to the Shifeng Bridge and this bridge was built and actually had to be rotated after it was built to link the two ends of the southwestern 5th Ring Road together. It was instead constructed in parts extending the expressway as it went along, the completion of this colossal work accelerated the completion of the entire ring road. At night, the Shifeng Bridge looks spectacular and it apparently is a trademark bridge of the expressway ring road. By mid-December 2004, an exit lane was fitted for the Wangjing Science. Previously, traffic used to clog up the ring road near that exit. Also, a second exit liaising directly with Wangjing is under construction, when the 5th Ring Road was completed, the expressway became a toll ring road. The charge was 0.5 CNY per kilometre as a minimum for small vehicles, the charge, although small, was exorbitant for many drivers, who shied away from the expressway. Further protests derived from the apparent fact that drivers were being charged the full CNY5 for just one kilometre of the road, from Yizhuang to the Jingjintang Expressway. Beijingers soon learned to avoid this path at all costs, preferring to sit out hours in jams on the 4th Ring Road
25.
Huilongguan
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Huilongguan is a suburban residential neighborhood in northern Beijing, located in Changping District,33 km north of the city. Originally, a town, Huilongguan has grown to become part of the extended Beijing metropolis inside the 6th Ring Road. The suburb is accessible by the Beijing Subway via Lines 8, Line 13 makes three stops along the southern edge of Huilongguan, at Longze, Huilongguan and Huoying. Line 8 has stops at Yuzhilu, Pingxifu, Huilongguan Dongdajie, Huilongguan is also traversed by a myriad of public buses, some running from the many apartment complexes in the area to the subway stations and others from the suburb into the city
26.
Changping District
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Changping District, formerly Changping County, is a district situated in the suburbs of northwest Beijing. Changping District, covering an area of 1,430 square kilometres, about 34 km from the city center, Changping is renowned for its numerous scenic spots and tourist facilities, like Datangshan museum. It is rich in resources, mineral products, and rural products. The urban area of Changping has an area of 16 km2, other major urban areas are Nankou and Yangfang. Public schools, Changping District No.1 High School Changping District No.2 High School Private schools, the Korean International School in Beijing was previously located in Changping District. Changping Railway Station Index, Districts of Beijing List of administrative divisions of Beijing Changping District
27.
Beijing Capital International Airport
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Beijing Capital International Airport is the main international airport serving Beijing. It is located 32 km northeast of Beijings city center, in an enclave of Chaoyang District, the airport is owned and operated by the Beijing Capital International Airport Company Limited, a state-controlled company. The airports IATA Airport code, PEK, is based on the citys romanized name. Beijing Capital International Airport is the hub for Air China, the flag carrier of the Peoples Republic of China. China Eastern Airlines, Hainan Airlines and China Southern Airlines also use the airport as their hub, Beijing Capital International Airport covers 1480 hectares of land. Beijing Capital has rapidly ascended in rankings of the worlds busiest airports in the past decade and it had become the busiest airport in Asia in terms of passenger traffic and total traffic movements by 2009. It has been the second busiest airport in terms of passenger traffic since 2010. The airport registered 557,167 aircraft movements, ranking 6th in the world in 2012, in terms of cargo traffic, Beijing airport has also witnessed rapid growth. By 2012, the airport had become the 13th busiest airport in the world by cargo traffic, Beijing Airport was opened on 2 March 1958. The airport then consisted of one terminal building, which still stands to this day, apparently for the use of VIPs. On 1 January 1980, a newer, larger Terminal 1 – green in colour – opened, the terminal was larger than the one built in the 1950s, but by the mid-1990s, its size became relatively inadequate. The first International flight to China and Beijing Capital International Airport was of Pakistan International Airlines from Islamabad. In late 1999, to mark the 50th anniversary of the founding of the PRC, Terminal 1 was then temporarily closed for renovation after the opening of Terminal 2. 20 September 2004 saw the opening of a renovated Terminal 1, other airlines domestic and international flights still operated in Terminal 2. Another round of expansion started in 2007, a third runway opened on 29 October 2007, to relieve congestion on the other two runways. Terminal 3 was completed in February 2008, in time for the Beijing Olympics and this colossal expansion also included a rail link to the city-center. At its opening, the new Terminal 3 was the largest man made structure in the world in terms of area covered, the expansion was largely funded by a 30 billion yen loan from Japan and a 500-million-euro loan from the European Investment Bank. The loan is the largest ever granted by the EIB in Asia, fresh from hosting the 2008 Olympic Games and adding its new terminal building, Beijing Capital has overtaken Tokyo Haneda to be the busiest airport in Asia based on scheduled seat capacity
28.
Sanyuan Bridge
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Sanyuanqiao, or Sanyuan Bridge is a major overpass on the northeastern stretch of Beijings 3rd Ring Road. The overpass links three major passageways in Beijing and the structure made it a speciality on its own in its first days. The Airport Expressway, Jingshun Road and the 3rd Ring Road were interlinked, originally, the Airport Expressways position was the old airport road. Today, the old road has become a service, or auxiliary road. This bridge also lends its name to this region of Beijing. At Sanyuanqiao, there is also a Beijing Subway station, line 10 and the Airport Express call at Sanyuanqiao Station, it is also the terminal station of the Airport Express rapid transit train
29.
Siyuan Bridge
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Siyuan Bridge is a large, complex overpass in northeastern Beijing, China. Similar to Wuyuan Bridge further north and Sanyuan Bridge further south, the Airport Expressway, China National Highway 101, and the 4th Ring Road are linked. Approaching east, one faces two exits within a few metres of each other, and the exit splits into two on the bridge. Half a kilometre away lies yet another exit, the exits for the portion coming in from the east are even more complex, and there is no entrance into the Airport Expressway heading south. Odder still, drivers heading for Beijing Capital International Airport can only enter the 4th Ring Road heading west, but those coming into central Beijing can pick both directions
30.
Tongzhou District, Beijing
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Tongzhou District is a district of Beijing. It is located in southeast Beijing and considered the gateway to the nations capital. Downtown Tongzhou itself lies around 20 km east of central Beijing, at the end of the Grand Canal. The entire district covers an area of 906 square kilometres, or 6% of Beijings total area. It had a population of 673,952 at the 2000 Census, the district is subdivided into 4 subdistricts,10 towns, and 1 ethnic township. Tongzhou was founded in 195 BC during the Western Han Dynasty under the name of Lu County, at the start of the Eastern Han Dynasty the character Lu by which it was known was altered by the addition of a water radical to become Lu. In 1151 under the Jin dynasty Lu County was renamed Tongzhou, roughly meaning the place for passing through, in recognition of its importance as the land, in July 1937, subsequent to the galvanising Marco Polo Bridge Incident, Tongzhou became another site of determined Chinese resistance. In the Tongzhou Mutiny troops of the nominally Japanese-puppet East Hopei Army rebelled and came to the aid of hard-pressed Guomindang troops, in the fall of Tongzhou to the Nationalists, many civilians were murdered and abused as well as captured Japanese military personnel. The place name changed to Tong County when the area was placed under the new region of Beijing in 1914. It reverted again to Tongzhou when the area was upgraded in 1997 to a district, on 11 July 2015, Tongzhou became the second administrative seat of Beijing as a sub-administrative center for the municipality. This was done to reduce crowding within the city center of Beijing, Tongzhou is situated on the North China Plain with an average elevation of 20 metres. Its climate belongs to the temperate zone, with distinct seasons including hot summers. It has a mean temperature of 11.3 °C. and 620 mm of rainfall. Several large rivers, amongst them the Wenyu, the Liangshui, Tongzhou District is divided into 4 subdistricts,10 towns, and 1 ethnic township. Two of the towns of which carry the area label, downtown Tongzhou is connected to downtown Beijing by Jingtong Expressway and Batong Line, Beijing Subway. Beijings Fifth and Sixth Ring Road are roughly equidistant from Tongzhous CBD, highways lead to Shenyang, Harbin and Tianjin/Tanggu. A seventh ring road, a subway line, a Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway. Downtown Tongzhou is earmarked for redevelopment into a central business district with an emphasis on consumer retail
