Talking Travel: More Ofo BS, Robot Parking Meters, and a Universal Studios Subway Stop

Talking Travel: Your semi-regular roundup of Beijing's latest transportation-related news.

Ofo pulls more BS to avoid falling into the abyss once and for all

Despite its glorious beginnings as the pioneer of the bike-sharing industry, the "little yellow bike" has slowly sunk into a sad state of irrelevancy as its competitors leave its old, rusty carcasses to decay on Beijing's sidewalks. The company's latest move is indicative of just how bad things have gotten for Ofo.

After incurring the ire of millions of users with their failure to return user deposits of up to RMB 199, Ofo reached into its sleeve for one more trick, but instead of pulling out the one billion yuan that it owes, it instead retrieved this cow turd of a solution: users will be able to slowly earn back their deposits via minuscule rebates on purchases made through a third-party app called Tiantian Faqian (Cashback Daily).

Reporting by Sixth Tone estimates that users are likely to need to spend thousands of yuan to earn back the full deposit, and furthermore, once a user has begun to earn back the deposit through the rebates, they may no longer seek the deposit by any other means.

Netizens were quick to issue their complaints about the maneuver, but meanwhile, the company flounders on. If you're wanting to help out the company, you can still scan Ofo bikes using the Didi app. But why in the hell would you want to?

Chaoyang District gets to connecting dead-end roads

Much of Chaoyang District was planned and built before cars became truly ubiquitous in the city, so it can be a labyrinthine place and a nightmare for drivers who have no choice but to take indirect routes and contribute to the city's traffic congestion.

To remedy that, the Chaoyang government is now working on connecting some of the district's many dead-end roads. So far, renovations have been completed on Yuhui North Road, Chaoyuan East Road, Jianan East Road, and 27 other streets, according to reporting by Beijing Evening News. Additionally, the Chaoyang District Transportation Committee has also announced plans to build a 150km-long bike highway by the end of this year... watch this space.

Parking fee collection gets automation treatment

On Dec 1, electronic parking monitor systems were rolled out in Mentougou, Fangshan, Shunyi, Daxing, and other outlying Beijing districts in an effort to regulate roadside parking. The devices, which also operate as parking meters, are designed to replace attendants throughout the city. They work via a high-resolution camera connected to an AI network, which takes photos or videos when illegal parking occurs, according to Beijing Youth.

Line 7 and Batong Lines get an extension

Beijing has the biggest and busiest subway network in the world. As it stands, 23 lines run for 678.2km across 394 stations, with the average passenger volume exceeding 10 million people per day back in 2014. Yet the system continues to expand, with the latest addition seeing the south extension of the Batong Line and east extension of Line 7 are on track to open by the end of the year. Both extensions are in aid of transporting passengers to the new Universal Studios complex, due to open in 2021, and include two new transfer stations: Shiyuan (施园) and Universal Studios Station (环球影城). The latter will reportedly feature images of such beautiful local scenic spots such as the nearby Tongzhou Grand Canal.

Qantas is dropping a Sydney-Beijing route

Crikey, mate! Australia's flagship airline is set to drop its direct Beijing-to-Sydney route due to stiff competition from Chinese airlines and lackluster sales in business class. This is the third time that the bouncing kangaroo has tried, and failed, to sustain the route. For now, the 11.5-hour route is still available through to February 2020, so if you've been thinking of taking a trip Down Under, now's the time to do lock it in. 

READ: Beijing South Railway Station Expands Paperless Tickets for High-Speed Trains

Images: Reddit, Bendibao, Sina News