Beijing, May 10: Beijing, the world's worst-hit city by SARS epidemic, has adjusted over 200 traffic signals along its main streets to optimise the time between green and red lights, as less traffic flow since the outbreak of the killer disease has made the earlier time gap unsuitable. The signal cycles have been shortened by an average of 10 seconds, the Municipal Traffic Control Bureau said.
The traffic flow in the Chinese capital has declined visibly due to the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which made the original timetable for traffic lights unsuitable.
The traffic signals at 42 crossroads were fitted with computerised real-time control and the signal cycles of more than 70 traffic lights along Chang'an avenue and other main streets were all shortened by about 20 seconds.
The adjustment could ensure smoother traffic flow for the smaller number of vehicles in this particular period, an official with the Traffic Control Bureau said.
Beijing has officially reported 114 SARS-related deaths till yesterday and over 3,000 have been infected with the deadly disease which was first reported in the south Chinese province of Guangdong in November last year.
As many as 18,608 people are now under quarantine in Beijing, the government today said in a statement. So far, 10,571 people have been released from isolation, it added. Bureau Report