The Final Deadline

Today was the start of half of Beijing's 3.3 million cars off the roads.

They started with license plates ending in even numbers allowed on the streets.

My friend wondered if those ending in "0" qualified as an even number as he says zero is basically nothing.

Wonder what municipal officials have to say about that.

We also saw a few cars without license plates. Does this mean they can drive everyday?

There were police out in force making sure cars with odd numbers were not driving; if they were they were fined 100RMB.

The authorities were also checking to make sure no one was using the Olympic lanes without the proper identification. Those who disobeyed this temporary two-month measure would be fined 200RMB.

Car sales have been brisk recently, as some car owners can't stand the thought of taking public transit or even a taxi and bought a second car with a different number license plate. How pathetic is that?

Today was also the day all outdoor construction had to stop. Many workers were madly working into the night last night to finish as much as they could. So today half-finished buildings were abandoned, some covered in light tarps to prevent dust from spreading.

So while traffic is now a breeze, more buses on the roads, and two more subway lines open as of yesterday, the sky looked blue, but with a strong tinge of gray.

Hopefully this enforced measure will help clear the air more, but really, it should be in effect in the long-term.