"from today, electric bikes carrying people, riding in the car lane..." etc., etc.

Presumably any electric bikes which are not carrying people, but just cruising around by themselves with no rider can go where they like then?

Ahhh! Another breath of fresh Chinese logic at work!

Electric bike accidents on the rise, or so they say? I can't believe this has anything to do with a "crackdown". Life is cheap in China. And besides, the accidents are more likely caused by the drivers of cars.... not bikes. What about cracking down on the car drivers which do not have to obey traffic laws in Kunming? But then, govt people drive cars, that would be crazy to consider ticketing car drivers!
Let's review.... cars are free to drive down in the bike lanes. Cars have the right of way turning onto major streets right in front of bike traffic, cars turn off streets without any need to signal crossing right through bike lanes, cars can park in bike lanes forcing bikers into the car lanes to go around them, cars do not have to observe pedestrain crossing lights, cars can turn left in front of oncoming traffic without yielding, cars do not need to obey traffic lights after 9pm...... The list goes on and on. So who is to blame for the bike AND pedestrian accidents? (Notice pedestrian accident stats are secret) More likely cars are to blame! But you will never see enforcement of traffic laws for cars since too many govt and military people all drive cars and this would impose too much inconvenience for them. I doubt it has much to do with public safety.

BTW, I own and drive both a car and a bike all over Kunming, so I talk from experience on both sides of the coin.

^You forgot about how the guys w/ government plates always drive in the bus lanes, too.

The cars are annoying, but they are pulled over and fined with increasing frequency, especially in the city center. The electric bikes, which I think are pretty cool, do cause a lot of problems. Until now, there has been virtually no enforcement, and you often see the electric bikes going the wrong way down the street, driving in pedestrian zones, and causing all kinds of other havoc. It doesn't help much that they are completely silent and most drivers don't turn on their headlights at night. If they don't start policing them better, some official will get annoyed and ban them outright.

Yes Xiefei, I agree. ALL vehicles should be made to follow the law or get fined. But I still say that the clear majority of injury/accidents arise from the drivers of cars. My point is that since safety was the reason for this "crackdown" the police should be targeting the cars. In a perfect world, I think both cars and bikes should be either made to follow the law or ban the both of them! Don't even get me started on the taxi drivers. They all should simply be shot.

I hear you there. I think that the whole idea of a "crackdown" is ridiculous in the first place. Instead of concentrating enforcement, say on certain central districts or certain time frames, they should be thinking about how to enforce the traffic laws they already have in place.
On the other hand, I see the traffic chaos as an endearing feature of living here, almost cute, like the Chinglish signs everywhere. Of course, I'm still nostalgic about the bicycle jams from back in the day...

I wonder if you'd find it quite so endearing lying broken in a chinese hospital after being sideswiped by a taxi driver more interested in the next fare than the well being of a fellow human. I in fact experienced one of your nostalgic moments a few days ago when one bicylclist swiped another carrying a load of pumpkins the whole lane was backed up whilst they argued with each other. One hazard that hasn't been mentioned are pedestrians, it's not unusual for me to find them strolling down the bicycle lane 2,3, even 4 abreast, completely oblivious to traffic whizzing past and horns blaring.

Wheww!
No ban!!

It's good to see law enforcment placed on both cars and electric bicycles to obey BASIC trafic laws.

Over the past year I've noticed improvements in the city center on driving habits of car owners and it was timely to see the E bike .

There will always be a grey zone in car lanes needing the bike lanes, this will need adaptation....

It's a huge task to educate the existing population on how to drive properly and use common sense, or it seems to be uncommon sence in this case.

Oh yes, Atomic has a good point.....

Pedestrians, totaly oblivious....they need a good education streak....

One sure way to get a message across in China is to make them pay if they dont obey; it works in the western countries..

"One sure way,,,is to make them pay". You forgot to mention that that is also the only way. Chinese people don't really care about people they don't know personally so just to point out the dangers of their doings works out about as well as spitting on a burning building.

Couple of days ago Chinese posters on Thebeijinger.com claimed that in China "green light means go and red light means go carefully",, seriously. One of them also claimed that the rules of traffic doesn't really apply to anyone since you only have to take care and be observant of what is going on ahead of you in traffic. I've heard that before and there is some truth to it but that doesn't necesarily mean it's the right way to run things (not to mention the obvious dangers under certain conditions).

Maybe when the next generation grows up having experienced their parents in cars and on scooters and having learnt some lessons things will improve,, I doubt it though.