Item from Sept 14, 1993, in China Daily: Renovation work on the eastern part of the Third Ring Road in Beijing has been completed. This is one of the city's major projects to improve road conditions and ease traffic congestion.

There is something almost quaint, reminiscent of bygone days, about this item.

When this article appeared, the road was almost on the outskirts of the capital. Now it is an integral part of the city, swallowed up by Beijing's breathtaking expansion.

This rapid growth has taken place, indeed been at least partly responsible, for soaring property prices, with homebuyers in Beijing taking on an almost legendary status.

While the city has still retained its sense of hospitality, traffic congestion and smog, both being tackled by the authorities, are factors that were almost unimaginable when the renovations were completed.

Urban planning, with a greater focus in the environment and technology, is now required. Consequently, in an effort to ease the traffic burden in the city, the government has decided to build a subsidiary administrative center for the capital in the eastern suburb of Tongzhou.

Once completed in 2017, most of the capital's municipal administrative bodies will move there.

The decision is also widely interpreted as further strengthening the bonds between Beijing and its neighboring regions, including the Tianjin municipality and Hebei province. It's only natural that a bigger Beijing should play a bigger role in the region.

Vehicles run slowly on the eastern part of the Third Ring Road in Beijing on Sept 1, 2016. [Photo/IC]