Jaywalkers Fined in Shijiazhuang
Has been some talk of doing this in the media. Following the Singapore model of fining to get people in line. Think similar tactics should be adopted in China to rein in a number of bad habits.
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| A new campaign initiated by the government of the city of Shijiazhuang in north China’s Hebei province will make pedestrians think twice about jaywalking.
Fines of 5 to 50 yuan ($0.80 to $8) will be levied on people who cross pedestrian walkways when the light is red as part of a two-month traffic safety campaign initiated by the city’s civilization office and traffic management bureau on Tuesday. It is common for pedestrians in most Chinese cities to ignore traffic regulations, with large crowds of people crossing against red lights on a regular basis. One of the city’s traffic monitors recently reported that about 600 people jaywalked within one hour at one of the city’s intersections. Wu Ruiqi, director of the traffic management bureau, said the first three people within a given group of jaywalkers at major intersections will be fined 5 to 50 yuan, while entire groups of jaywalkers at smaller intersections will be fined. Traffic police, coordinators and volunteers have been sent to 400 intersections across the city to enforce the new rule, Wu said. Those who cannot afford the fines will be given the option of volunteering to guide traffic and pedestrians at one of the targeted intersections or receive related education instead, Wu said. Xinhua |