After decades of rapid urbanization, China is taking a step back and thinking more critically about the future of its booming cities. The country’s urban policy unit recently met for the first time in 38 years to craft a set of guidelines for future development.
According to City Metric, since the Central Urban Work Conference last met in 1978, China’s urban population has jumped from under 20 percent to 57 percent. That boom’s largely due to cities building hundreds of new sub-cities and towns, leading to sprawling urban areas that are difficult to navigate without a car. ... The new guidelines (posted in full in Chinese here; a summary in English is available here) released Feb. 21 are aimed at refocusing China’s urban areas from building as fast as possible to revitalizing existing spaces into sustainable, dynamic communities.
Key recommendations in the guidelines include:
- Denser street networks and narrow roads
- Historical preservation
- Expanded public transportation networks
- Increased public and green space
- More energy-efficient and high-quality construction
- Enforcing urban growth boundaries and reducing sprawl
The focus on sustainable development is in line with the country’s recently released five-year economic plan. The Diplomat reports that China aims to double its 2010 GDP and per capita income levels by 2020, primarily through new innovation and technological advances. Premier Li Keqiang’s government work report released Saturday outlined a number of policies, including tax incentives for high-tech firms and encouraging alternative methods for funding startups, including crowdsourcing, angel investors and venture capital, aimed at driving innovation.
The country’s 13th five-year plan, which covers the period from 2016-2020, also puts a focus on green development — particularly in the country’s largest cities.