Journeys Along
the Seventh Ring
By That's Beijing
The story of Beijing’s Ring Roads is in many ways the story of Beijing’s urban development. The original ring (known confusingly as the Second Ring) was constructed in the early 1980s, at the behest of city planners, who, in embracing reform-minded ideals, became convinced of the need for a modern circular highway.
Built along the route of the old city wall, the Ring neatly divided the inner city from its newly emergent fringes. The Third Ring was built in 1994 and the Fourth and Fifth in 2000 and 2003 respectively. The Sixth Ring, the current outermost band, was built in 2010. At each stage, the construction of a Ring accompanied – or was built to accommodate – the expansion of the city. In 1980 Beijing’s population was 9 million. By the time the Sixth Ring was constructed thirty years later, it had grown closer to its current size of 21 million.
The growth of China’s urban population is among the most significant developments in recent history. In 2011, the country’s population of city dwellers surpassed that of rural areas for the very first time. Today, it is estimated that 750 million Chinese people live in cities.
Set to open in 2017, the proposed Seventh Ring will extend for over 900 kilometers, with around 90 percent of its length being built through neighboring Hebei. What this means for the capital is unclear.
In addition to further stretching the definition of ‘Beijing’, the expressway is being billed as the backbone of a colossal 130-million-person megalopolis. The Capital Economic Circle (nicknamed 'Jing-Jin-Ji') will see Beijing absorb eight large cities in Hebei and link the Chinese capital with Tianjin, itself one of the country’s largest metropolitan areas (over 10 million residents).
Over the next 9 chapters, we journey along the proposed route of the Seventh Ring, through the hinterlands of Hebei, visiting the places and meeting the people whose lives it looks set to irreversibly alter. Part travelogue, part road trip, the journey is intended as a momentary snapshot of a rarely documented world.
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Video
Chapters
Words by: Stephen George, Karoline Kan and Oscar Holland
Photography by: Noemi Cassanelli
Video & Additional Reporting by: Stephy Chung
Navigator: Huang Xiaohui
Music: "SINKA" by Howie Lee
Map Design by: Tin Wu
Online production by: Bridget O'Donnell
From left to right: Noemi Cassanelli, Stephy Chung, Stephen George, Huang Xiaohui, Karoline Kan and Oscar Holland. (Click Image to enlarge).
