Beijing Roads Headed Toward Maximum Capacity

2,000 New Cars Hit Beijing Streets Everyday

As the government and cultural center of the country, Beijing is a worthy capital of a rising China. The city’s infectious aspirations have led it to become a prime destination for ambitious Chinese from all parts of the country (and foreigners from all parts of the world). Unfortunately, this has not been without consequences to the city’s transportation network.

The massive growth of Beijing has put undue strain on the city’s roads. And though there has been a proliferation of new roads built in and around the city, the construction has not kept pace with the amount of new car owners. Continue reading

City Journal’s Guy Sorman: China Basher

Beijing’s 798 Arts District

While browsing through the front page of the planning website Planetizen the other day, I came across a link to a story from the autumn issue of City Journal titled ‘Asian Megacities, Free and Unfree‘. City Journal, published by the Manhattan Institute, is one of my favorite publications about urban issues, and usually produces well-reasoned, thought-provoking pieces. And given the topic of this piece, I was excited to read what I thought would be a compelling article about the rise of Asian cities.

I couldn’t have been more wrong. Continue reading

Architect Ole Scheeren Opens New Office in China

CCTV Building in Beijing. Photo by Fred @ SG

German architect Ole Scheeren, a former partner of the Dutch firm OMA and lead designer of the CCTV Building in Beijing, recently announced the establishment of his own architectural practice, Büro Ole Scheeren. This news is significant not only because of the exciting work bound to come out of the new office, but because Scheeren has selected two Chinese cities (Hong Kong and Beijing) as the base for his operations. According to the press release:

In choosing China as the firm’s headquarters, Büro Ole Scheeren demonstrates its commitment to Asia and the region’s acute significance in the worlds of architecture and design.Continue reading