First appeared in
Asian Development Bank
50 climate solutions from cities in the People's Republic of China
Xining Greenway is linking scenic spots in and around the city with designated cycle paths, with positive benefits for health, air quality, and tourism in the city.
Whilst home to Asia’s largest cycling race, the Tour of Qianghai Lake, Xining has struggled to get more of its citizens to use bicycles on a day-to-day basis. With the introduction of a new bike hire scheme and construction of hundreds of kilometers of cycle greenways, the city is getting people out of cars and onto two wheels.
350
KM OF CYCLEWAYS TO BE BUILT BY 2020
Along the banks of the Huangshui river and beyond, Xining city is planting trees and building 350 km of designated cycle lanes that link the city center with scenic spots in the surrounding mountains via green spaces. Xining Greenway has been designed with leisure, tourism and fitness purposes all in mind, with an underlying ‘eco-harmonization’ approach. The Greenway network is designed to make cycling more accessible to locals and tourists alike, with the help of a cycle hire scheme operated by Changzhou Yongan Hang Cycling Ltd. By replacing car journeys with bike rides, the city hopes to reduced CO2 emissions, by 12,000 tons annually by 2020, and improve local air quality.
Xining Greenway makes use of the Huangshui river to create new cycle routes in the city.
The Challenge
Despite Xining’s status as the “cool-summer capital” in the PRC, it has some of the worst air quality in the country. A lack of cycle infrastructure and the chaotic roads make cycling an unattractive mode of transport. Xining Greenway aims to change this through designated and pleasant green spaces for cyclists.
Co-Benefits
Environmental By encouraging a greater number of cycle journeys, Xining hopes to reduce carbon and particulate emissions in the city and enhance greener lifestyles for its residents.
Health Increased mobility has great impacts for public health and leads to a reduction in lifestyle diseases. The project’s green infrastructure will also help to reduce the urban heat-island effect.
Social Xining Greenway is becoming a new leisure and fitness space for citizens of all ages and backgrounds, with many new businesses opening along the cycle paths.