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Why does Beijing experience severe traffic congestion?

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Map of eastern Asia highlighting China and its neighboring countries, with an arrow pointing to Beijing Municipality in northeastern China. The map includes international boundaries, disputed borders, and lines of control, and shows major surrounding countries such as Russia, Mongolia, India, Japan, North Korea, and South Korea. An inset at the bottom left shows the location of China within Asia. — Beijing Beijing city and municipality, China.

Beijing experiences severe traffic congestion primarily because its road transport system has been unable to keep pace with the rapid increase in the number of privately owned automobiles. While the city has worked to improve its infrastructure—notably through the significant expansion of its subway system and the construction of an increasingly dense network of highways—these efforts have struggled to accommodate the growing volume of vehicles on the road.12

This challenge is a common issue faced by many modern cities undergoing rapid economic growth, where the rise of a consumption-oriented middle class has led to a surge in car ownership. Despite the proliferation of automobiles, bicycles and three-wheeled cycle carts remain heavily used for short-distance transport, further contributing to the complex traffic environment within the municipality.21