Transportation in Beijing

Beijing is a transportation hub and has a well laid out network of roads, railways and a major airport. Commuting in Beijing should be the least bothersome issue in a visitors mind. The city has convenient transportation links, extending in all directions. The well laid out rail and road network enables one to have a pleasant journey at Beijing. The fastest mode of public transportation is subway and city rail, with high speed trains, which run at an interval of 3 to 5 minutes. The entire city has large number of sub stations, spread out across Beijing. The station names are broadcast on the trains in both Chinese and English, making traveling an extremely simple experience for the visitor. The first subway runs begins from 5.00 am and concludes at 11.00 pm.

Public buses are the next most significant means of transportation in the city. Public buses incidentally also happen to be the cheapest means of commuting. During the Beijing Olympics 2008, it would be a good idea to purchase a Public Transportation Card, which charges a starting fare of forty cents per trip. A visitor merely needs to give 20 Yuan as security deposit and prepay a certain amount to use the Public Transportation card. And when you leave Beijing, the security money will be refunded to you. There are more than 500 bus routes in Beijing and the buses in the city are named from 1 to 999.

The Public Transportation Card can also be used in the Subway and City Rails. Another mode of public transport is taxis. One can book a taxi in advance making the visit convenient and tension free. The international airport of Beijing is the Beijing Capital International Airport near Shunyi. There are other lesser known airports also, where domestic flights are operational. Traveling in Beijing undoubtedly, will be a hassle free experience and people in the capital city, for the Olympic Games will be easily able to reach the different venues of sporting events.