BEIJING (AFP) - Beijing is planning to ban a million cars from the city's streets for two weeks next month as a test-run to ensure clean air at next year's Olympics, officials said here Wednesday.3O-]iM!\:NB,J7|KL0"The plan has been drawn up and is ready to go," said Fan Yinlong, a city government spokesman, referring to a range of measures that will include the ban on one million cars in notoriously polluted Beijing from August 7-20.
4uU-|$D$gh%h0That two-week period is crucial to Olympic planners, as it roughly coincides with the time that the Games will be held next year, from August 8-24.
\ j0J5^3F9`0Beijing will also host 11 Olympic test events during the fortnight, including cycling road races, wrestling, hockey and beach volleyball.
i4c6wO/W4jZK0Beijing has spent around 15 billion dollars on a massive pollution clean-up in the run-up to the Olympics, according to city officials, but air quality remains a key concern.
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T]$g~ C%mD0Despite assurances from the Chinese government, International Olympic Committee leaders have expressed deep concern about the problem and demanded "contingency measures" to contain the pollution threat.绿色建筑博客6E4Zs*H7K!D g P5R
Beijing Olympic organising committee spokeswoman Zhu Jing also confirmed that the traffic ban was being prepared as part of the one-year countdown test program.
z0B2t%F^ j b/tN0Zhu said the plan to remove one million of Beijing's three million cars was inspired by a similar campaign that proved effective during a China-Africa summit hosted by Beijing last year.绿色建筑博客~ {i;L Z.t'Id
"Air quality was better, and traffic congestion improved," she said.绿色建筑博客1r;F @j)J#r%i?
Zhu said the measures would be officially announced once they are approved by the city's rubber-stamp People's Congress on July 24.绿色建筑博客3O L-Z:u&AIe
