Beijing parks set tourists admission ceiling (Xinhua) Updated: 2004-05-01 11:20
Major parks in Beijing have taken measures like setting tourists admission
ceilings or increasing entrances and exits to avoid possible stampedes as they
are expecting a soaring number of tourists and local park-goers during the May
Day holidays.
"We have required all major parks in the city to take
necessary measures to guarantee the safety of the visitors, with emphasis laid
on the prevention of stampedes," an official surnamed Zhang with the Beijing
Municipal Parks and Gardens Administration told Xinhua Saturday.
The
Chinese capital witnessed a major stampede tragedy in early February this year,
in which 37 people were killed and 15 others injured as they were enjoying a
lantern show in an overcrowded park in Miyun, a suburban county in northeast
Beijing.
Sources say that the Zhongshan Park in downtown Beijing, very
close to the Tiananmen Square, has set its tourists admission ceiling at 20,000,
which means tourist admission will be suspended once the number of people in the
park exceeds 20,000.
However, officials with the Parks and Gardens
Administration said that all parks had tried their best to expand their
reception capacity and facilitate tourists flows during the holidays.
The
Summer Palace, a royal garden for Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) emperors in northwest
Beijing almost as famous as the Forbidden City, has raised its reception
capacity by means of adding several entrances and exits, opening 11 provisional
ticket offices and setting up 6 tourists reception centers. It is now able to
receive some 100,000 visitors simultaneously.
As the February stampede in
Miyun had occurred on a narrow bridge, some parks have imposed one-way passage
restrictions on all narrow sections, especially on the bridges, the officials
added.
The Chinese have been enjoying a 7-day public vacation from May 1,
or the International Labor Day, to May 7 for several years as the government is
eager to promote tourism and stimulate domestic spending. The May Day holidays,
dubbed "the golden week for tourism", usually see tens of millions of Chinese
travel around the country mainly for sightseeing.
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