Shanghai - Jing'an police increased efforts

[mblank]

Just a quick heads-up that the Jing'an police department seems to be clamping down on non-Shanghai license plated bikes and cars. Please note that this is not an official report, but apart from my own experience last week, and the feedback I have had from friends that live in the area, they are getting tougher on this.

For those of you not living in or around Shanghai; only the coveted Hu license plates are allowed inside the city, and they are expensive. Therefore many people seem to make do with Jiangsu or Zhejiang plates, and accept the occasional fine. Now, however, the fine seems to be accompanied by points on your license (3 for this offense), and confiscation of the bike for a limited amount of time.

From what I can see, this ambition to limit illegal bikes isn't necessarily shared in other parts of town (yet?). Where I live in Xujiahui, the police seem completely disinterested in foreigners with outside plates...

Mark

[bikerdoc]

Hi Mark, FWIW and AFAIK, this is nothing unusual and has been a SH 'rule' for ever in a day. For those of us that legitimately live outside SH who might ride in SH on occasion, then the rule might be less enforceable - meaning while the monetary fine might be legit and enforceable, the application of 3 points might be able to be contested - provided one can prove they do actually live outside the city. As is usual practise a fair amount of leniency and how one approaches any given situation have a significant role to play.

I ride and have ridden to SH once or twice a year over the past 9 years (gawd knows why since there are no mountains, reservoirs or particularly appealing vistas [aside from man made ones] to be had). I've never once been pulled over, though I have had my share of inquisitive glances by the local SH constabulary on occasion. I've even ridden round SH Peoples Square - quite by accident - I might add, all without fanfare.

Not to say that it can't or won't happen though.

YMMV

[MotoKai]

This is all true.

The crackdown started this year (as reported in the Shanghai news that it would), and it's not limited to Jing An District but most of the downtown districts, aka "The Forbidden Zone", where they have been conducting a massive increase in roadside inspections this year. The enforcement area typically coincides with the districts requiring the Hu-A plates (commonly and wrongly referred to as inside the inner ring). See Milton's post here which gives the accurate description: http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...ll=1#post70660 I'll simply refer to this collection of districts as "The Forbidden Zone".

Few guys I know already got stopped this year and received both fines and points for their infractions related to riding inside the forbidden zone (one with out of town plates - Chongqing; another with Hu-C plate inside zone; etc).

I ride with a Hu-A plates and in the last 4 years issues have been few to none. This year alone I've been stopped for "inspection" about 6 times. Mostly all occurring at traffic lights, including JingAn but also Luwan, Xuhui and even out in Hongqiao (Changning). In total I have received 2 警告 (warnings) for random things like being on a two-way street that becomes one-way for a few hours of the day = WTF?

For this violation, it was a street I rode down "the legal direction" and only going halfway down the block. I purchased what I needed, then came back the other direction. That's when the officer stopped to inspect my paperwork and then decided to give me the computer-recorded, electronic print out warning. I tried telling the officer that there was no sign indicating the street becomes one-way for a few hours of the day. He said there was a sign at the end of the street. I explained that I never got that far only going to the store 30 meters down to purchase some goods (I even showed him what I bought including proof that it was the store in the middle of the block). He didn't care.

Anyway, the warnings only stay on your record for 60 days. Provided you don't get another warning during this period it is removed. The second was in Luwan and they were stopping mostly scooters for being on a car-only road. I had just pulled onto this road, riding less than 50 meters. I told the officer if this is the case, I'll just continue on one of the side roads that are motorcycle friendly. It was too late, he was already typing my plate number into the wireless electronic device and printing out a warning.

It is what it is. Good luck out there fellas.

[braillce]

[...] I ride with a Hu-A plates and in the last 4 years issues have been few to none. This year alone I've been stopped for "inspection" about 6 times. Mostly all occurring at traffic lights, including JingAn but also Luwan, Xuhui and even out in Hongqiao (Changning). In total I have received 2 警告 (warnings) for random things like being on a two-way street that becomes one-way for a few hours of the day = WTF?

For this violation, it was a street I rode down "the legal direction" and only going halfway down the block. I purchased what I needed, then came back the other direction. That's when the officer stopped to inspect my paperwork and then decided to give me the computer-recorded, electronic print out warning. I tried telling the officer that there was no sign indicating the street becomes one-way for a few hours of the day. He said there was a sign at the end of the street. I explained that I never got that far only going to the store 30 meters down to purchase some goods (I even showed him what I bought including proof that it was the store in the middle of the block). He didn't care.

Anyway, the warnings only stay on your record for 60 days. Provided you don't get another warning during this period it is removed. The second was in Luwan and they were stopping mostly scooters for being on a car-only road. I had just pulled onto this road, riding less than 50 meters. I told the officer if this is the case, I'll just continue on one of the side roads that are motorcycle friendly. It was too late, he was already typing my plate number into the wireless electronic device and printing out a warning.

It is what it is. Good luck out there fellas.

Same here, I used to be controlled twice a year, this year it's over 10 times already.

Ur warning story is complete BS, I mean not fair, I got fined like that once, in the time u did that "illegal" maneuver and got ur warning printed, there probably has been 30 electric bikes and 5 (forbidden) trikes that rode every way in the wrong way, crossed the street anyway they could regardless of regulations and incoming traffic, but the pig only came and bother u...

They need to understand that the plague of SH's traffic are the zillions of unlicensed, unregistered and unbrained e-bike riders who ride never follow any traffic regulation except riding on the street once in a while, and don't even have brakes or lights, then they need to do smthg about it instead of giving us sheet while we went through so much to be street legal...

I've heard all e-bikes need to be registered with plates soon, and that they want to ban all electric bikes in a couple years (YEAAA!!!!), or is it just unregistered e-bikes (let's hope not).

I don't know, and it's rumors, but it smells like sheet will soon come their way, and I hope I'll still be there to watch with a big grin on my face.

Anyways.

I haven't got any warning yet, but I did escape a couple of times this year when I probably would have one or worse as they tried to stop me for riding on moto-banned streets (Xizang in Pple Square).

Thanks for the heads up regarding the warnings, and good luck to u too.

[milton]

....I explained that I never got that far only going to the store 30 meters down to purchase some goods (I even showed him what I bought including proof that it was the store in the middle of the block). He didn't care.

You meant to tell us for 30 meters in SH you took out your JH600, a real pig of a bike, and rode it to the store? You deserve a ticket!

[MotoKai]

That's why I need an X2 in my stable (for those 30m rides!)

[anguscharlton]

I've been riding in Shanghai for two years and was stopped in Pudong last week. The policeman was pretty aggressive to start with but then when I said I couldn't speak Chinese at all he calmed down and gave me a warning for crossing from the middle lane to right lane to take a right hand turn. He actually tried to stop all 8 bikes I was with but the rest were chinese and just rode away.

I've got a Hu A plate and a fully legal bike and licence, which he looked at briefly.

They really seem to be tightening up on motor bikes in Shanghai.

[bikerdoc]

IMO the tightening activities will likely occur for a period then will revert back to the status-quo or 'regular programming'. Similar occurrences happen here and elsewhere - clamp downs and adherence to the 'rules and regulations' for a period before the powers that be move onto the next focus of control... its a typical cyclic phenomena...

Move along nothing to see here...