Beijing second most congested Chinese city in 2017

Newly released analysis of traffic in 100 major Chinese cities shows that Beijing became the second most congested city in China last year, rising one place compared with 2016.

Night view of highways and roads overcrowded by masses of vehicles during a traffic jam at CBD (Central Business District) on World Car-Free Day in Beijing. [File photo: IC]

According to a recent report compiled by Chinese navigation service Gaode Map, as well as several other institutes, Jinan, the second most congested city in 2016, has overtaken Harbin, capital city of Heilongjiang Province, to top the list in 2017.

Harbin, which had the worst traffic in 2016, is now in third place, followed by Chongqing, Hohhot, Guangzhou, Hefei, Shanghai, Dalian, and Changchun.

Jinan also has the highest average traffic delay among the 100 cities, with vehicles in the city spending a total of 2,078 hours in traffic jams last year, an average 5.7 hours daily.

The report indicated that 51 of the 100 cities have seen traffic congestion reduce compared with the previous year, with the overall traffic jam index down 2.45 percent.

However, 22 cities still have mounting traffic congestion, including eight in Guangzhou and four in Jiangsu. The traffic index in Guangdong's Qingyuan saw an 8.13 percent rise in 2017, the most significant increase among the 100 cities.

The coastal city of Qingdao witnessed the biggest improvement in its traffic flow, with the congestion index dropping 9.66 percent compared with 2016.

The report also suggested that the fourth quarter was the most congested period of 2017 and December the most congested month.