Carpooling brings benefit to Beijing and neighbouring cities

Commuters seek a shared ride home during rush hour, in Beijing, on Tuesday. [Photo/VCG]

The latest data from Didi Chuxing, China's largest ride-sharing service, has revealed that the number of car-sharing services traveling among Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei province has quadrupled in the past year.

The three most popular routes taken by users of car-sharing service have been between Beijing and the port city of Tianjin, Hebei's Langfang and Baoding.

Carpooling services have also helped to relieve the pressure on Beijing's air traffic, with many opting to carpool to neighbouring cities to fly. The data of the survey revealed the number of people using car-sharing services to go to the Tianjin and Shijiazhuang airports has quadrupled in the past year.

The data also showed tourist attractions, such as the lake of Baiyangdian and Qinhuangdao city in Hebei, were popular among car-sharing service users. Trips to these areas have increased by three times.

According to Didi Chuxing, the total distance travelled using shared rides, in the past year, amounted to 270 million kilometers among the cities involved. This has helped to reduce the carbon dioxide emission of 49,000 tons in a year, which is equivalent to how much CO₂ 2.67 million trees absorb in a year.

Yang Zhiquan, a resident in Yanjiao, a town 30 kilometers from downtown Beijing, is one of many people who have benefitted from offering fellow commuters a lift.

The 48-year-old works at a construction company in Beijing, and spends more than four hours commuting to and from work every day.

Yang said he enjoyed having someone to talk to on the long, lonely journey, and started offering rides to commuters in the beginning of this year.

"I get to meet different people, such as businessmen and average office workers, on the way to and from work every day," he said.

Yang told Beijing Youth Daily, in a report on Tuesday, the car-sharing experience has not only brought friendship, but extra income.

Didi Chuxing estimated by the end of 2017 about 1.6 million rides will be taken each month among Beijing, Tianjin and cities in Hebei.