Matt Schiavenza From the Dragon to the Apple- A Sinophile in New York

The Amazing Speed of Change

When I arrived in Kunming 18 months ago, the main artery separating my road from the university was called 一二一大街， an extension of the city's first ring road. The road was quite narrow and traffic flowed in both directions; also, at major intersections, pedestrian crossings often slowed car traffic to a crawl.

To rectify this problem, the city government late last year turned 一二一大街 into a one-way street, diverting southbound traffic to the parallel 学府路. They also constructed two massive pedestrian overpasses (called 天桥, or "sky bridge" in Chinese) to alleviate pedestrian congestion. For a few months, traffic flowed much faster.

Now, perhaps seven months after these changes, traffic is now worse than ever. On days when I take the bus back from work, we come to a complete stop. The driver even turns off the ignition. Passengers become restless. Moods become black.

The only explanation that I can think of is that there has simply been a massive increase in the number of cars on the road.

In 2010, Kunming plans to open its new international airport, located far from the city center. When completed, the airport will be the fourth largest in China (both in terms of passenger traffic and cargo). The current airport will be torn down and redeveloped into a central residential complex, shifting Kunming's effective "downtown" 8 or 9 kilometers southward.

When did the current airport open? 1999. When retired, it will have been in use 11 years. The "old" airport is now the current airport's air traffic control tower. And even though the current airport will be in use for only two more years, the government has still invested massive sums of money into refurbishing and expanding it. That's how many new passengers and flights are happening.

Changes occur in China far faster than they do in fully developed countries, which is why most visitors here are amazed by the constant construction work. In many places, changes occur gradually and are only noticeable many years later. One of the most exciting aspects of living here, to me, is that changes happen right before your eyes.