China will increase investment in public transportation, provide subsidies to transport companies and set up bus-only lanes, Wang Guangtao, minister of construction, said Nanjing at a meeting Monday.

China will focus on the construction of major public transportation centers and high-speed bus-way pilot projects and establish priority public transport lanes, he said.

Developing public transportation is one of the keys to increased traffic efficiency, the easing of traffic jams and solving of urban traffic problems, experts said.

Beijing, the host city for the 2008 Olympic Games, promised that by 2008 it would not take more than an hour to drive between any two Olympic sites.

As part of the strategy of prioritizing public transportation, a 16-kilometer high-speed bus-way will begin operation in Beijing by Dec. 30.

Source: Xinhua