Beijing starts a traffic ban on Thursday, pulling half of the cars off its roads from Aug. 20 to Sept. 3.
The capital city is hosting two big events in the next few weeks, the IAAF track and field World Championships, from Aug. 22 to 30, and the World War II victory parade, on Sept. 3.[Special coverage]
The odd-even registration plate systems means that cars will only be allowed to drive on the city's roads on alternating days between 3 a.m. and 12 midnight.
Around 80 percent of official business vehicles will also be affected by the ban.
The same policy was used last year in Beijing during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings to much success.
"I was surprised when there was no traffic around the CBD area," said netizen Sunny Jeme on Weibo on Thursday morning. "But then I realized that today was the first day of the car ban."
According to statistics from Beijing Traffic Management Bureau, congestion on major roads did not occur until 7:30 a.m. Thursday, about an hour later than ordinary days.
Between Aug. 20 and Sept. 3, Beijing also banned small flying aircraft, including drones, model airplanes, unmanned balloons, gliders, among others. Sales of anything that flies under 1,000 meters and at a speed less than 200 kilometers an hour are also banned in Beijing during that period.
A rehearsal of the military parade will be held on Sunday morning. Traffic control will be imposed on certain roads at the weekend.
