One of the biggest problems facing crowded cities today is transportation. If there is no existing subway or train system, building one can be extremely cost-prohibitive, not to mention disruptive to existing transit systems. The Shenzhen Hashi Future Parking Equipment Company has an idea that could address the issue at a tenth of the cost of installing a subway. It’s a train that straddles the existing highway.

While the train looks intimidating at first, it’s actually quite smart. Unlike a subway, which puts trains underneath roads, Shenzhen’s design requires minimal infrastructure, using the above-ground routes already constructed. Presumably, it requires only tracks on either side of the road to operate, and would run on solar and grid electricity. The cost for building it is estimated at 10 percent that of building an equivalent subway.

China has already commissioned a test section of 115 miles of track in Beijing’s Mentougou district to begin later this year. It will be interesting to see how it works out.

Photo from fOTOGLIF

Tensions continue to ease between China and Taiwan.

Taiwan is to open its first office in mainland China since the two sides split at the end of civil war in 1949.

The office – known as the Taiwan Strait Tourism Association’s Beijing Office – will try to encourage more Chinese tourists to visit the island.

The opening of the office is a further sign of improving cross-strait ties.

Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou came into office in 2008 focusing on reducing tensions between the two former rivals.

Since Mr Ma opened up Taiwan to Chinese tourists in mid-2008, the number of Chinese visitors to the island has skyrocketed.

The photo above shows Chinese tourists leaving a duty-free shop in Taipei, Taiwan. Taiwan opened its first tourism office in Beijing to promote tourism and handle tourists’ problems, but will not issue visas.

Taiwan and China split at the end of a civil war in 1949. Tension eased in the late 1980s when Taiwan allowed its citizens to visit China. Last year, some 4 million Taiwanese visited China, while 970,000 mainlanders visited Taiwan.

China is a beautiful country, with its traditional heritage and culture. Major places to travel are Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Kunming. If you are planning on traveling to China, there is more than one way in which you can enjoy a thrilling tour of the country.

You can either rent a car for a land tour, or go on a cruise for a tour of the rivers, but here are the top 10 places of China that you shouldn’t miss:

• Great Wall of China
• Forbidden City
• The Bund
• Terra Cotta Warriors
• Yellow Mountain
• Potala Palace
• Dian Chi
• Li River
• Mogao Grottos
• West Lake

Land Tour

As the Chinese economy expands at a rapid rate, air travel is expected to grow considerably in China.