Changes in how people work and live has boosted private over public modes of transport

By Gao Baiyu, August 24, 2020 

Ride-share cyclists in Beijing this August (Image: Alamy)

The coronavirus is generally under control, but its shadow still hangs over the daily life and transport choices of China’s city dwellers.

People seem to be opting for private over communal modes of transport: passenger numbers on public transport have picked up but remain lower than before the outbreak. Meanwhile, journeys on shared bikes have recovered and more car journeys are being made than pre-Covid-19.

This is a worry as China’s urban pollution increasingly comes not just from coal burning, but from a complex mix of coal smoke, vehicle emissions and secondary pollutants. In 2018, “mobile pollution sources” accounted for more pollution than industry in Beijing, and were the main source of fine particle (PM2.5) pollution, accounting for 45% of local emissions, according to the municipal environmental authorities.

The moment for personal transport

As the pandemic eased off, urban transportation got back up to speed – but it still isn’t where it was.

Few people are commuting by subway on workdays. Late May saw subway passenger numbers only recover to 60-80% of December’s levels, according to figures gathered from 10 first- and second-tier cities by the National Business Daily. On 28 May, for example, Beijing and Guangzhou had reached 61% and 67% of December’s numbers respectively, with Shanghai at 78%.

Meanwhile, indexes of rush hour congestion generally rose. By 28 May, Beijing’s congestion index was 23% up on December’s levels, according to the survey. Shanghai and Guangzhou saw smaller increases, of 20% and 11%. Richard Liu, East Asia director for the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy, an international NGO, attributes those increases to more cars being on the roads.

Figures from bike-sharing firm Hellobike, which boast of having a 50% market share, show that rental figures had fully recovered in May, with large growth in user numbers. Shared bikes are also now being ridden longer distances. As the outbreak stabilised in China, Hellobike has seen a significant increase in the proportion of journeys of over 3km. This was most apparent in Wuhan, where three times as many longer journeys were made than previously. Richard Liu told China Dialogue that shared bike operators saw average journey lengths of 1km prior to the outbreak, but now often see trips of 3-5 km – which was the previous average for shared electric bikes. Bike riders are more willing to make complete journeys where previously they only peddled to and from public transport.

That personal transportation is quickly becoming more popular while public transport makes a slow comeback is down to wariness about virus transmission.

Will this current trend turn into lasting behaviour change? Will traffic figures continue to grow? Experts suggest answers to hese questions have to do with how demand changes. New ways of working may reduce the need to commute, while fear of a new outbreak will make people less inclined to travel for work or leisure.

“Car sales may increase in the near-term, as people look for safer transport options. I have one colleague who’s preparing to buy a car, after finding not having one difficult during the pandemic,” said Gong Huimin, senior project director for Energy Foundation China’s transport program. “But in the long term, deeper impacts of the coronavirus on people’s transportation behaviour will reduce demand for travel and so reduce car use.” He pointed to how meetings have changed. Previously, Chinese firms rarely used teleconferencing – Tencent only released a videoconferencing service last December, but within two months it had over 10 million active accounts a day. “The pandemic has got everyone used to video calls, so they might not always opt for face-to-face meetings,” Gong said.

Deng Han, senior transportation engineer with the ITDP, agrees. He says people have moved around less during the pandemic, with offline activity moving online. In the medium and long term, the greater efficiency of working online will make this a habit, reducing the need to travel. “We’ll see changes in transportation in line with changes in how we live.”

During the lockdown many people became more reliant on walking (Image: Alamy)

Rail transport bides its time

Alongside these changes, government-led building of transportation infrastructure and favourable new policies for electric cars will also affect the transportation mix.

According to Beijing’s overall plans for 2016 to 2035, the city is due to have around 1,000km of subway and elevated rail by the end of 2020, and no less than 2,500km by 2035. But as of the end of last year, it had less than 700km. Guangzhou’s subway plans would see the city have a 2,000km urban rail transport network by 2035, four times as long as today. In 2018, the Shenzhen Metro Group told the media the city would have 580km of rail by 2022, with 33 lines stretching 1,335km by 2035 – nearly five times the current length. There is still huge potential for subway expansion.

According to the Beijing News, 59 urban rail projects across 12 regions were approved by national or provincial level development and reform commissions in 2019, with investments totalling 970 billion yuan (US$140 billion). Work was due to start in 2020 on 30 of those, worth 400-500 billion yuan. In March, some media outlets described rail transport as part of “neo-infrastructure” – which really means digitalisation and smart technology, including data centres and 5G base stations. Despite a media review of government stimulus measures finding that rail did not qualify as neo-infrastructure, and experts agreeing that it’s not “new infrastructure” either, markets still took an extra interest. Industry bodies have even predicted that investment in rail could reach 1.2 trillion yuan this year, and 6 trillion yuan over the coming five years. That interest, on top of ambitious government plans for subways, may result in a bigger rail construction rush and faster changes in public transportation choices.

Electric vehicles get government backstop

Meanwhile, in the car sector, the shift from traditional fuels to electricity is being closely watched.

Last July, after reductions in subsidies, monthly sales of electric vehicles (EVs) saw the first year-on-year fall for two years, and 2019 became the first year in a decade to see a reduction in EV manufacturing. With the dual impact of the pandemic and plummeting oil prices, consumers have become less enthusiastic about EVs: sales fell year-on-year until June, and dropped 37.4% year-on-year during the first half of the year.

Faced with this decline, the government stepped in. On 31 March, Chinese premier Li Keqiang chaired a meeting of the State Council, at which subsidies and tax waivers for purchases of EVs were extended for two years – the subsidy had been due to expire at the end of this year. On 23 April, the Ministry of Finance and three other ministries published new policies on subsidies, calling for a steady reduction, of 10%, 20% and 30% on the previous year’s level, in 2020, 2021 and 2022. But the government also tightened range restrictions: vehicles are now eligible for subsidies only when they have a range of at least 300km, rather than the previous threshold of 250km.

Alongside subsidies, the government is also pushing ahead with EV infrastructure. On 14 April, the State Grid started construction of 78,000 new charging points, at a cost of 2.7 billion yuan. This will include 53,000 charging points in residential communities and 18,000 in public locations. These charging points, spread across 24 provinces, will ease recharging difficulties for EV owners. It has been estimated that this new infrastructure will drive 20 billion yuan in spending on EVs.

These policies saw year-on-year sales of EVs rise in July, for the first time this year.

Meanwhile, provincial-level governments have also been loosening restrictions on car purchases to encourage EV take-up. On 1 August, Beijing announced it would allow 20,000 carless households to purchase EVs; Shenzhen has relaxed criteria for private purchasers of EVs, with non-permanent residents (people with a residence permit but no household registration/hukou) now allowed to apply; and Shanghai will continue its existing policy of not restricting purchase of EVs and of halving the length of the registration process. According to Gong Huimin, the greater ease of purchasing an EV is a key motivator for many buyers.

The Innovation Centre for Energy and Transportation (iCET), a Beijing- and Los Angeles-based thinktank, thinks these financial and non-financial measures will increase EV demand – but that the industry still has many issues in urgent need of resolution. These include recharging access, battery safety and recycling, and an imbalance in development of passenger and commercial EVs. And in a written response to China Dialogue, an iCET expert said that “the pandemic means a shake-up for the industry, an opportunity to integrate superior resources, improve manufacturing efficiency and eliminate substandard firms.”

But the more profound impact of the pandemic on transportation may be on public attitudes.

People are finding slower forms of transport more important. Richard Liu told China Dialogue that during lockdowns many people became more reliant on walking and cycling. Major cities such as New York, London and Milan have converted roads to cycle lanes – changes which will be permanent. Chinese cities are also actively developing slower transport options. For example, the Beijing Municipal Institute of City Planning & Design is designing the second phase of a bicycle expressway. The first phase

 opened last May, linking the residential district of Huilongguan with the high-tech industrial zone of Shangdi.

Deng Han thinks the pandemic has left people reluctant to make long leisure trips, and they now prefer to visit parks within a 10-15 minute walk. It is time, according to him, to advocate for the “15-minute city”, where services including leisure, exercise, shopping, healthcare and banking are all available within a 15-minute walk or cycle. “Moving in that direction would also help reduce car use,” he said.

By Natasha Levy | 23 August 2020 

British practice Ström Architects has completed Island Rest, a low-lying holiday home in the Isle of Wight that is clad in beams of blackened larch wood.

Island Rest has been designed by Ström Architects as a "home away from home" for a family of four, who wanted a place where they could spend quality time together.

The house is nestled in a creek that looks out across The Solent, a 20-mile-long stretch of water that separates the Isle of Wight from mainland England.

First revealed in a series of renderings in 2018, the now-complete Island Rest house comprises a single-storey rectilinear volume clad with beams of black-stained larch wood.

A low-lying structure was specifically chosen so as not to compromise views of the surrounding natural landscape.

"We wanted the house to sit quietly against the backdrop of trees, while feeling like it embraced the views when looking out," said the practice.

"Our clients asked for an architecturally timeless building, drawing on the very best modern architectural concepts to create a whole – no frivolous moves; rigour must flow through every space and every detail that the building is."

As the area surrounding Island Rest is prone to flooding, it has been positioned to sit at the highest point of the site.

At one end the house is supported by a grassy hill, but as this gradually slopes away, slim metal poles are instead used to elevate the structure.

Expansive panels of glazing have also been fitted on both sides of the home to maximise sightlines and natural light.

Inside lies an open-plan living and dining area, complete with a jet-black kitchen suite. This leads off to a fleet of bedrooms for the owners' three young children.

Each room has been given a largely simple fit-out to make them "places to sleep and not places to stay", in a bid to encourage the children to spend more time playing outdoors.

To give the parents a greater sense of privacy, their bedroom has been placed on the opposite side of the house.

It has ensuite bathroom facilities and access to a small deck that leads down to the swimming pool and verdant garden.

"Landscaping was a consideration from the outset and has a very natural and organic feel, with mowed paths through wildflowers leading to and defining areas of different function and interest," added the practice.

Ström Architects was established in 2010 and is based in the New Forest, a district of Hampshire, England.

Other homes on the picturesque Isle of Wight include The Sett by Dow Jones Architects, which takes design cues from black-painted fishermen sheds seen dotted along the island's beaches.

There's also House for a Yachtsman by The Manser Practice, which is punctuated by several glazed openings.

Photography is by Nick Hufton of Hufton + Crow.

Online Workshop Series

Exploring Criteria and Indicators for Tropical Peatland Restoration

 2 September 2020, 1.30-4.00 PM (GMT+7)

Indonesian peatlands, including peat swamp forests, comprise 36% of the world’s tropical peatlands. As one of the largest tropical peatlands, Indonesian peatlands provide numerous ecosystem services, including their ability to slowly sequester and store carbon. Despite their important benefits, Indonesian peatlands have faced deforestation and drainage since the 1980s, mainly for forestry and agriculture purposes.

Peatland restoration needs to be underpinned by monitoring efforts that allow an adaptive approach. A scientifically robust, reliable and practical set of criteria and indicators (C&I) can help to assess progress and outcomes of restoration efforts. Identified C&I should cover four aspects:  (1) biophysical, (2) social, (3) economic, and (4) governance.  This allows restoration targets to be adequately quantified, and success measured.

The Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) in collaboration with the Indonesian Ministry of Environment and Forestry (MoEF), Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UN Environmental Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC), International Tropical Peatlands Center (ITPC), and Global Peatlands Initiative (GPI) has organized this online workshop to facilitate the process of developing C&I for peatland restoration through knowledge exchange and expert discussion.

Get more information and register at: https://www2.cifor.org/swamp/exploring-criteria-and-indicators-for-tropical-peatland-restoration/

 Apologies for cross posting.

The scholar and activist has spent more than 50 years working for social justice. This summer, society started to catch up.

IN THE MOMENT    

Angela Davis, at her residence in Oakland, July 2020. Poncho by Pyer Moss.Photograph by Deana Lawson.

AVA DuVERNAY: I was reading an interview in which you talked about something that’s been on my mind quite a bit lately. It’s about this time we are in that I’ll just call a racial reckoning. Do you feel that we could have encountered this moment in as robust a manner as we’ve felt it this summer without the COVID crisis having been the foundation? Could one have occurred with this much force without the other?

ANGELA DAVIS: This moment is a conjuncture between the COVID-19 crisis and the increasing awareness of the structural nature of racism. Moments like this do arise. They’re totally unpredictable, and we cannot base our organizing on the idea that we can usher in such a moment. What we can do is take advantage of the moment. When George Floyd was lynched, and we were all witnesses to that—we all watched as this white policeman held his knee on George Floyd’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds—I think that many people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds, who had not necessarily understood the way in which history is present in our lives today, who had said, “Well, I never owned slaves, so what does slavery have to do with me?” suddenly began to get it. That there was work that should have happened in the immediate aftermath of slavery that could have prevented us from arriving at this moment. But it did not happen. And here we are. And now we have to begin.

The protests offered people an opportunity to join in this collective demand to bring about deep change, radical change. Defund the police, abolish policing as we know it now. These are the same arguments that we’ve been making for such a long time about the prison system and the whole criminal justice system. It was as if all of these decades of work by so many people, who received no credit at all, came to fruition.

You understood the dangers of American policing, the criminalization of Black, native, and brown people, 50 years ago. Your activism and your scholarship has always been inclusive of class and race and gender and sexuality. It seems we’re at a critical mass where a majority of people are finally able to hear and to understand the concepts that you’ve been talking about for decades. Is that satisfying or exhausting after all this time?

I don’t think about it as an experience that I’m having as an individual. I think about it as a collective experience, because I would not have made those arguments or engaged in those kinds of activisms if there were not other people doing it. One of the things that some of us said over and over again is that we’re doing this work. Don’t expect to receive public credit for it. It’s not to be acknowledged that we do this work. We do this work because we want to change the world. If we don’t do the work continuously and passionately, even as it appears as if no one is listening, if we don’t help to create the conditions of possibility for change, then a moment like this will arrive and we can do nothing about it. As Bobby Seale said, we will not be able to “seize the time.” This is a perfect example of our being able to seize this moment and turn it into something that’s radical and transformative.

I love that. I know that there’s a lot of energy around how to keep the attention. But what you’re saying is it needs to be happening in isolation of any outside forces. So that when the right time comes, there’s a preparation that had already been in process. Don’t think so much about sustaining the moment. Just always be prepared for the moment when it comes, because it will.

Exactly. I’m also thinking about your contributions. So many people have seen your work, your films: 13th and the film on the Central Park Five.

When They See Us! I can’t believe you know about it. I’m excited.

Oh, my God. I’ve not only seen it, but I’ve encouraged other people to look at it. I saw that really moving conversation between the actors and the actual figures. All of that helps to create fertile ground. I don’t think that we would be where we are today without your work and the work of other artists. In my mind, it’s art that can begin to make us feel what we don’t necessarily yet understand.

You’ve just made my life saying that. Thank you is not enough. There is a lot of talk about the symbols of slavery, of colonialism. Statues being taken down, bridges being renamed, buildings being renamed. Does it feel like performance, or do you think that there’s substance to these actions?

I don’t think there’s a simple answer. It is important to point to the material manifestations of the history that we are grappling with now. And those statues are our reminders that the history of the United States of America is a history of racism. So it’s natural that people would try to bring down those symbols.

If it’s true that names are being changed, statues are being removed, it should also be true that the institutions are looking inward and figuring out how to radically transform themselves. That’s the real work. Sometimes we assume the most important work is the dramatic work—the street demonstrations. I like the term that John Berger used: Demonstrations are “rehearsals for revolution.” When we come together with so many people, we become aware of our capacity to bring about change. But it’s rare that the actual demonstration itself brings about the change. We have to work in other ways.

I always love talking to you because you drop nine references in the conversation. You give me a reading list after from your citations. John Berger. Writing that down. One of the things that you’ve talked about that I hold on to is about diversity and inclusion. In many industries, especially the entertainment industry where I work, those are buzzwords. But I see them in the way that you taught me during our conversation for 13th. These are reform tactics, not change tactics. The diversity and inclusion office of the studio, of the university, of whatever organization, is not the quick fix.

Absolutely. Virtually every institution seized upon that term, “diversity.” And I always ask, “Well, where is justice here?” Are you simply going to ask those who have been marginalized or subjugated to come inside of the institution and participate in the same process that led precisely to their marginalization? Diversity and inclusion without substantive change, without radical change, accomplishes nothing.

“Justice” is the key word. How do we begin to transform the institutions themselves? How do we change this society? We don’t want to be participants in the exploitation of capitalism. We don’t want to be participants in the marginalization of immigrants. And so there has to be a way to think about the connection among all of these issues and how we can begin to imagine a very different kind of society. That is what “defund the police” means. That is what “abolish the police” means.

How can we apply that to the educational system?

Capitalism has to be a part of the conversation: global capitalism. And it’s part of the conversation about education, because what we’ve witnessed is increasing privatization, and the emergence of a kind of hybrid: the charter schools. Privatization is why the hospitals were so unprepared [for COVID-19], because they function in accordance with the dictates of capital. They don’t want to have extra beds because then that means that they aren’t generating the profit. And why is it that they’re asking children to go back to school? It’s because of the economy. We’re in a depression now, so they’re willing to sacrifice the lives of so many people in order to keep global capitalism functioning.

I know that’s a macro issue, but I think we cannot truly understand what is happening in the family where the parents are essential workers and are compelled to go to work and have no childcare. Not only should there be free education, but there should be free childcare and there should be free health care as well. All of these issues are coming to a head. This is, as you said, a racial reckoning. A reexamination of the role that racism has played in the creation of the United States of America. But I think we have to talk about capitalism. Capitalism has always been racial capitalism. Wherever we see capitalism, we see the influence and the exploitation of racism.

We haven’t been talking a lot about that period of Occupy. I think that when we look at how social movements develop, Occupy gave us new vocabularies. We began to talk about the 1 percent and the 99 percent. And I think that has something to do with the protests today. We should be very explicit about the fact that global capitalism is in large part responsible for mass incarceration and the prison industrial complex, as it is responsible for the migrations that are happening around the world. Immigrants are forced to leave their homelands because the system of global capitalism has made it impossible to live human lives. That is why they come to the U.S., that is why they come to Europe, seeking better lives.

How does it feel for a woman born into segregation to see this moment? What lessons have you gleaned about struggle?

That’s a really big question. Perhaps I can answer it by saying that we have to have a kind of optimism. One way or another I’ve been involved in movements from the time I was very, very young, and I can remember that my mother never failed to emphasize that as bad as things were in our segregated world, change was possible. That the world would change. I learned how to live under those circumstances while also inhabiting an imagined world, recognizing that one day things would be different. I’m really fortunate that my mother was an activist who had experience in movements against racism, the movement to defend, for example, the Scottsboro Nine.

I’ve always recognized my own role as an activist as helping to create conditions of possibility for change. And that means to expand and deepen public consciousness of the nature of racism, of heteropatriarchy, pollution of the planet, and their relationship to global capitalism. This is the work that I’ve always done, and I’ve always known that it would make a difference. Not my work as an individual, but my work with communities who have struggled. I believe that this is how the world changes. It always changes as a result of the pressure that masses of people, ordinary people, exert on the existing state of affairs. I feel very fortunate that I am still alive today to witness this.

And I’m so glad that someone like John Lewis was able to experience this and see this before he passed away, because oftentimes we don’t get to actually witness the fruits of our labor. They may materialize, but it may be 50 years later, it may be 100 years later. But I’ve always emphasized that we have to do the work as if change were possible and as if this change were to happen sooner rather than later. It may not; we may not get to witness it. But if we don’t do the work, no one will ever witness it.