EVERY weekday morning was a rush for 13-year-old Beijinger Qin Yixing before the Beijing Olympic Games. She got up at 6:10. She spent 20 minutes washing and packing her bag. At around 6:30 she was down in her mom’s car, ready to go. Qin always had her breakfast in the car. They had to set out as early as possible to avoid rush hour. If there was a traffic jam, their 30 minutes’ ride to school could become an hour.

But now things are getting better for Qin, and other Beijing school kids. The city is continuing its traffic ban program of Olympic year. Starting April 13, cars in Beijing have to take one day off a week. On which day does a car have to stay at home? It all depends on the last number on its plate: 0s and 5s on Mondays, 1s and 6s on Tuesdays, 2s and 7s on Wednesdays, 3s and 8s on Thursdays and 4s and 9s on Fridays.

On ban days, drivers cannot use their cars between 7 am and 8 pm within the Fifth Ring Road. On weekends or holidays all cars are allowed on the road.

The program has even stricter rules for government cars. They are banned around the clock on their ban days. Ambulances and cars for public uses don’t have to follow the rule.

Many think the program is going to make Beijing a greener city. “Beijing’s air is getting better,” said Li Kunsheng, official in charge of Beijing vehicles.

But other people think differently. Some worry that it may push the rich into buying a second car, which would have a different last number on its plate. Others doubt the ban will help reduce traffic greatly in Beijing.

Did you know?

1. Beijing now has just 200kms of subway line. The city is building more lines to solve the traffic problem. By 2015, Beijing will have 561kms of line in use. New York City has 1056kms and London has 400kms of subway line.

2. Subways cost a lot. For example, Line 10 in Beijing, at a length of 25kms, cost the city 13.7 billion yuan. That is 548 million yuan for every kilometer.

How other countries are trying to deal with the problem

Traffic overload is a world headache. People are working hard to beat the problem in different ways.

Pack your car and get there quicker

With so many people driving these days, there are many traffic jams. To make sure drivers are not stuck on the road forever, we need to find a solution. The US and Canada build lanes for high-occupancy vehicles . These are vehicles with a driver and one or more passengers.

Different countries have different rules about use of the lanes, but in general it’s cars with two or more people. In some places HOV lanes are in full-time use; in other places other vehicles can use the lanes outside of peak hours.

In the United States and Canada, HOV lanes are also called diamond lanes for their diamond-shaped markings.

Watch the light and you know where to go

WHEN there are lots of cars on a road, what can people do? The UK, Australia and many other countries use a ramp meter. A ramp meter is a basic traffic light with a signal controller.

These countries often use the meters in rush hours and in traffic hot spots. They detect traffic flow  and speed on main roads. The information they gather can help limit cars at busy times and in busy places. How do they work? The red light shines longer to make greater distances between cars.

Some metered ramps have bypass lanes for vehicles with more than two people. They can skip the queue and get directly onto the highway.