Beijing's Chaoyang District seeks zero jaywalking

Hundreds of volunteers will join traffic police in east Beijing's Chaoyang District to combat jaywalking and other traffic irregularities in a bid to shape Beijing's first "zero jaywalking" street.

Volunteer traffic wardens line up to promote "Zero Jaywalking" on Tuesday, July 8, 2014 at a public place in east Beijing's Chaoyang District. The local Chaoyang district government initiated a campaign to ensure better road safety by eliminating pedestrian running red light, among other jaywalking activities. [Photo by Chen Boyuan / China.org.cn]

The enhanced effort to curb jaywalking follows the initiation of the local government, which wants to improve the image of Beijing's most developed part of town.

The month-long campaign that started Tuesday involves volunteers standing on duty during the rush hours of 7-9 am and 5-7 pm each day to help pedestrians follow traffic signs. The campaign will also consist of lobbying for traffic safety in public places such as shopping centers and nearby residential communities.

According to traffic police authorities, a total of seven intersections and 21 crosswalks will be under close surveillance during the campaign.

This activity is seen as an elevation of the campaign called "I promise not to run a red light," which started in April of this year. According to the organizer, Office for Morality Improvement at the district government, 8,123 people have contributed up to 10,000 hours of community service in maintaining order at pedestrian traffic lights.

One traffic volunteer, who identified himself as Mr. Tian, said traffic violations happen when people follow the conduct of others in what is known as the herd effect.

"Refraining from running a red light could be very easy for anyone, but is somehow difficult for a city," Tian said.

He added that Beijing, as the capital city, is often the first window through which foreigners observe China, and jaywalking ensures a tainted image in the eyes of rule-following Westerners.

The campaign to reduce jaywalking is not the first of its kind in China. In fact, abiding by traffic rules for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians has always been stressed but has had little effect on the number of jaywalkers.

Given that following traffic signs should be a basic societal norm in most countries, purposefully staging a "zero jaywalking” campaign shows how much pedestrians' awareness of traffic rules has deteriorated.

More than one year ago, Beijing joined a handful of other cities in China that fine jaywalkers. Reckless pedestrians are fined 5-50 yuan (US$0.81-$8.12) for running a red light. Very few people were reportedly fined, and the enforcement consisted mostly of verbal warnings.

A traffic police chief who didn't want to be identified confirmed that jaywalking has monetary punishments, but he declined to reveal how many pedestrians were actually fined during the past year saying, "on spot criticism and dissuasion was still the mainstream method."