Note: Nick Chu is presently on vacation in China but still managed to smuggle the follow observations out from behind The Great Firewall.
South Street in Xi'an. A dynamic mixture of construction cranes, ancient monuments, public transport (BRT), cars, bicycles and pedestrians often seen in many Chinese cities. Image by Nick Chu.
A quick look at some of the things that make urbanism in China work (or not) – all stats from The Concrete Dragon by Thomas J. Campanella:
Percentage of Chinese population living in cities at the founding of the PRC in 1949: 10.6%
Number of cities in China in 1949: 58
In 1978: 193
In 1999: 667
Number of rural migrants to Chinese cities from 1949 – 1956: 35 million
Estimated number of people who died during the 1960’s famine in China: 30 million (greater than the number of deaths caused by the European Black Death plague in the Middle Ages)
Percentage of Chinese population living in cities by 1960: 20%
By 1990: 27%
By 2006: 40%
By 2030 (estimated): 60%
Number of rural migrant workers presently in China: 140 million (equivalent to 5 times the number of undocumented Mexican nationals currently in the United States)
Annual salary of a rural migrant worker in Shanghai in 2002: 3,560 renminbi
In rural areas: 920 renminbi
Number of bicycles in China in 1990: 540 million
Percentage decrease in bicycle ownership between 2001 and 2006: 26%
Number of Chinese traffic fatalities in 2000: 83,000
Percentage of traffic fatalities in 2000 involving bicycles: 33%
Typical number of Americas travelling during Thanksgiving: 65 million
Number of Chinese worldwide travelling during New Year Holiday: 2 billion