Patrick Chovanec, an economics professor in Beijing, explains that the majority of Chinese have more time and less money, so prefer slower, cheaper modes of travel than the new, expensive bullet trains.
With high-speed rail expensive to build and operate, the average Chinese migrant worker (the majority of those in the traffic jams around the country) aren't willing to pay the higher fares that would get them off the road, says Chovanec:
"Some 5,149km of high-speed track were put into service last year, making the network stretch to 8,358km, the world's longest But the opening of more fast train services has led to fewer regular trains being available for budget-conscious passengers."
"[An official spokesman for the Ministry of Transportation] said this year the situation had pushed many passengers, who used to ride home by slow trains because of the cheap tickets, onto long-distance buses."
FULL STORY: The Backlash Is Brewing Against Chinese High-Speed Rail: Here's Why It's In Trouble
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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Placer County
Mayors' Institute on City Design
City of Sunnyvale
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Cornell University's College of Architecture, Art, and Planning (AAP), the Department of City and Regional Planning (CRP)
Lehigh Valley Planning Commission
City of Portland, ME
Baton Rouge Area Foundation