Today (September 22) is World Car Free Day, a worldwide annual occasion which encourages people not to drive but use mass transit, ride bicycles or just walk for one day. China's mega cities, including Beijing and Shanghai are also officially involved in the event. With over 5 million automobiles in the capital, CCTV reporter Han Peng traveled around the city to see how people are getting around.

Han Peng, Beijing, said, "The Car Free Day for Beijing has become a big irony. It's morning rush hour... The roads of this booming capital is anything but car free. Though the municipal authorities have taken the lead in not using cars today, for ordinary people, it's a very simple question: how will they go to work if they don't drive?"

"In such a city, people who own private cars don't drive for fun."

"We support the idea of giving up driving, but for people like me who live 30 kilometers away from my workplace. Driving is the most acceptable way of travelling."

"In town, without my car", is the slogan of a major campaign promoting the use of mass transit and bicycles while giving up driving, even just for one day.

First started in France, it now officially involves around 40 countries and over 500 cities and towns around the world, including China's mega cities like Beijing and Shanghai.

While it's largely failed to take traffic off the roads here in Beijing, the only exception is a few blocks around the Olympic Stadium and Nanluoguxiang, where municipal authorities marked the area as "car free zones", banning private vehicles from entering.

Han Peng, Nanluoguxiang, Beijing, said, "Walking down this traditional alley, you feel the peace and tranquility in the heart of this bustling city. This is an example of what our life could be if there were really fewer cars on the street. But in reality, there is another side of the story."

But in reality, the car free zones have just made surrounding areas even more congested. Many people say that when it comes to improving Beijing's traffic, better city planning and infrastructure are more crucial than just marking a one-day occasion.

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