Accidents Continue to Drop in Shanghai Thanks to Traffic Police

Shanghai's traffic police have been everywhere we turn, but seems they've made quite the difference.

Since March, when a citywide campaign to enforce stricter laws was put into place, traffic accidents and casualties have dropped.

Accidents in general fell 24-percent, deaths 14-percent and injuries 47-percent over the same time frame as last year. Additionally, accidents caused by drivers ignoring red lights reduced by 71-percent and those caused by speeding dropped 65-percent. Bike and car and pedestrian collisions were also reduced by a solid 65-percent.

Part of the reduction in accidents comes from improvements to the average time spent on major elevated highways being cut by an hour, as well as buses being able to increase their speed in bus-only lanes due to car drivers staying in their own lanes.

Those RMB20 tickets we've been racking up for riding our motorbikes on the sidwalks are a small price to pay if it means saving lives. 

[Image via Shanghai Daily.]