There is a major highway that goes from Beijing, China all the way to Lhasa, Tibet. It was built to accommodate the ever growing migration of Chinese immigrants to Tibet. Traffic is so heavy that in August of 2010 a traffic jam occurred, lasting 10 days and stretching 120 kilometers. This particular route has and will continue to have heavy traffic congestion and legendary traffic jams due to poor planning, ongoing construction slowdowns and inadequate refueling stations and fuel shortages. The last 10 day traffic jam spurred locals living along that route to capitalize on the incident by selling food, blankets, etc… to stranded drivers. A captive audience was there to service and the locals made exorbitant profits as a result. China is one of the fastest growing economies on the planet and the new found wealth is reflected in the status symbols of automobiles and vehicles of all kinds. Many Chinese cities date back thousands of years and were built with large fortified walls to protect against invasion. Many of those cities have ring roads surrounding those fortified cities and were built to accommodate small vehicles such as horse and donkey carts and later bicycles by the millions. Much of the ancient narrow streets still exist and are still in use as the infra structure slowly changes and modern roads, freeways, bridges, overpasses are being constructed. The face of China is changing at breakneck speed and drivers, pedestrians are suffering from the stress of those growing pains. The traffic congestion might be the reason why Chinese drivers don’t have to do a road test to get a driver’s license. Recent statistics reported (Oct, 2010) in the city of Tai Yuan, China stated that there are an estimated 350 new drivers and cars added to congest traffic every day. It’s not uncommon to be travelling down an 8 lane freeway in Beijing and see a farmer using the same route to drive his mule or donkey cart into the city to sell produce each day. A first time visitor to China should brace themselves for culture shock caused by all the traffic and people. It would appear that the rule book was thrown out the window when you witness cars making left hand turns from the far right lane , across 4 one way lanes, or cars driving the wrong way on a one way street. It’s not uncommon to see people crossing the street against the lights or even diagonally across busy intersections. There are traffic police but not enough of them to make much impact. Taking a taxi ride in any major city in China is an adrenaline rush for foreigners as they witness so many near misses they can’t believe its normal for the locals. Driving in China would be an ordeal for any Foreigner who’s not accustomed to the organized chaos of traffic, bicycles, donkey carts and people found in any major city. Have good brakes, a loud horn and nerves of steel to try your hand at driving in China. Expect the unexpected.