A new measure for street parking has just gone into effect in Beijing. Fees have increased to 10 yuan an hour. And new electronic parking meters are now in use.

CCTV reporter Xue Jingmeng said, “Besides, we also noticed that timing unit for parking changes from 30 minutes to 15 minutes. That means the driver should pay 2.5 yuan per 15 minutes from 7am to 9 pm.”

A Beijing resident said, “I’ve parked less than 10 minutes. It cost me 2 yuan. I don’t want to park. I can’t afford it.”

Another resident said, “It’s really hard to find a parking space in Beijing. There’s a reason for the increase. But I think for the residents, cheaper is better.”

Parking is big headache in a city with about 5 million vehicles on the road.

The municipal government aims to add 200,000 commercial parking spaces and 50,000 public ones over the next five years.

Until then, it’s every car for itself.

(Shanghai May 23) – In order to further improve the efficiency of street parking regulations in Beijing, the Municipal Commission of Transport is currently conducting research on how best to deal with drivers who avoid or refuse to pay parking tolls, the Beijing Times reported today.

The MCT has set up electronic parking meters on 972 parking spaces on streets in Beijing’s eastern Chaoyang District. The meters are set to run for two months. According to an official statement by the MCT, the electronic meters represent an important new phase for parking management in Beijing. The meters come with POS credit card machines for easy payment. In order to prevent unpaid tolls and other offences, they are also equipped with electronic surveillance and magnetic vibration sensors. However, there are still concerns that these safeguards could be thwarted. The MCT is conducting research and referencing various legal studies on how best to deal with potential problems.

Electronic meters are expected to be in operation on all of Beijing’s streets by the end of the year. Magnetic vibration equipment for 10,622 parking spaces on 187 streets in the central Xicheng District is to be installed next month. Once current test work is complete, 54,793 spaces on 1,396 streets in Beijing will begin using the new meters.