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Welcome to Tianjin! No bikes allowed.

I've been living here in Tianjin for 4 years now, trying to figure out WTF is going on regarding bikes 3, and actually riding one for 2. I'm far from an expert but I've done some leg work so I thought I'd share it here. Anything that is a FACT* I will state as such, anything that I've heard I'll make sure you know, anything I think, well you get the idea...

*this is China, facts can change...

Please remember that Tianjin is both a province AND a city - much like Beijing. I am talking about Tianjin province mostly or I will refer to "Tianjin City".

Fact: Tianjin city is a no-bike city (see photo above...) anything inside the outer-ring road (外环线) but NOT including the outer-ring road itself is a no-bike area. In addition some highways and expressways are explicitly "no-bike" as well.

Fact: Tianjin province can ride legally registered and plated motorcycles, no problem ;)

Fact: If your residence permit is inside the ring road you cannot register a Tianjin province motorcycle in your name or get a license plate for it.

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Ok, rumor has it that before 2007 there were bikes all over the city. This apparently pissed off the audi owners or something. There used to be a lot of horses and donkeys too - which is why you'll also see "no motorcycles or horses" signs elsewhere on the ring road... Thus the city-wide ban. This is why you'll also see occasionally an extremely old Honda, Suzuki, Jialing, chained to a building with a 津A, 津B, or 津C plate. I don't know what plates they issue now, I've literally never seen a "new" Tianjin bike or plate.

In about 2008 people (farmers) wised-up and bought the switching e-bike + gas engine for using inside and outside of the city. Those too were banned (see about where it says "including gas assisted vehicles" in Chinese) and the police confiscated a ton of those bikes. BTW that's what happens - the police setup "stings" in their periodic enforcement times by getting a larger trailer, parking it at an intersection with about 12 cops and then nabbing every gas bike that rolls by and throwing it in the trailer. bye-bye!

In 2010-2011 the "delivery boy" bikes (see my old lida in my signature) became popular. Rumor was because it had pedals it was technically a bicycle. When I purchased mine (naively) the shopkeep said you couldn't plate/register it even if you wanted because it's a bicycle, not a motorcycle. Also gaining popularity at that time the 50cc scooters. Then another 2-week "enforcement" downtown netted a few hundred bikes, but actually this seems not to have deterred people.

In 2012 the R9 came. Especially popular with Korean students for the ability to go fast and not have to pay attention to the road while driving with 2 or 3 other people on the back. Now bikes from Hebei are being seen in town occasionally too. BTW for you people in cities that are bike "friendly", "occasionally" means maybe you see a bike every 2 to 3 weeks- it's kind of bizarre. CB250, AX-1, F650GS, Harley. But not more than I would say 15-20 bikes in the city still. And these are never seen being ridden. I suspect that the owner has a moving van follow his taxi to starbucks so he can show off his "status symbol" while sipping his chai tea lattle, and then it gets loaded up in the van again.

In April 2013 Harley Davidson dealership opens (inside the ring road??). The only motorcycle dealership in the city (or province) that I'm aware of. In 1 month they've sold 28 bikes. And I've never seen a single one on the road. And no, they can't do registration for you like the 京B plates. You need a "friend" who lives outside the ring road to register it to their residence - this goes for Chinese too.

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The reality: If you're comfortable with the prospect of your bike being seized and walking away from it, then don't worry about license/reg - especially if you're on an R9 or a delivery boy bike. It's only a couple thousand RMB. And unlike other tier-1 cities, Tianjin is very much still the "wild west". Enforcement (of anything!) is lax, people, including police, are lackadaisical, and as long as you don't run someone over, you're alright. Just don't run someone over...

So what can you do? Simple.

Go to Beijing, buy a nice bike from a reputable dealer, get it plated with 京B plates, and drive it back down to Tianjin. I have done this, as well as another user on this forum. Finally, stay out of the city, mostly... 1.5Km of my daily commute is inside the ring road, but it's worth the risk to me. My dog's shoulder blades are taller than 15cm (which is also illegal inside the city, big dog ban...) but what can you do... Oh, one last rumor: IF you get pulled over on a legal bike (license, reg, ins.) driving illegally in the ring road it's a 200RMB fine payable on the spot. Much better than getting a bike confiscated, eh?

Oh, and yes, there is a bike market in TEDA full of chop-shop stolen bikes. But you don't want one of those.

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map of tianjin.

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If you have 250,000-300,000RMB you can get a bike here too.