the SW 4th Ring Road at Shibalidian, the SW 5th Ring Road at Dayangfang and the SW 6th Ring Road at Majuqiao. Jinghu Expressway: Connects with the Jinghu Expressway at Yixingbu. Jinji Expressway: Connects with the newly opened Jinji Expressway at Central Tianjin exit (Jinzhong Road). Tianjin Outer Ring Road: Connects at Yixingbu. Safety Upon its completion, the PRC authorities and state media spared the least of efforts in trumpeting the creation of the Jingjintang Expressway, promoting it to the bitter end, and creating an illusion that the expressway was it in the PRC's expressway world. As a result of this widespread promotion, the expressway was known as the "golden expressway". In November 2004, however, things looked very different. Incessant traffic jams, breakdowns, and chaos on the expressway earned it a more popular nickname—the "road of death". The very problem lies within the expressway itself—massive traffic. The expressway was designed for a traffic audience of 50,000 vehicles a day—and apparently, not a vehicle more, as the current average of 59,000 vehicles a day is stretching the expressway to its limits. Meanwhile, during periods of high use, 130,000 vehicles are reported to be using the expressway -- per day. Compounding the problem is a very narrow (2.4 m in width) hard shoulder, and the lack of emergency bays. Compound that with fog in the southeastern Beijing section, and no lights at night outside of the 4th Ring Road (Beijing), and one understands why the label "road of death" sticks so well to the expressway today. Traffic China was a different country back in 1993, when the expressway first opened. For a start, there were fewer drivers, and traffic—especially expressway traffic—was less of a problem. Therefore, when the expressway opened in September 1993, it could cope rather well with just two lanes in one direction—for over a hundred kilometres. Things changed in the late 1990s. Private citizens could apply for driver's licences with greater ease, and traffic as a whole increased on PRC roads. The situation on the expressway in 2004, therefore, is different from that of 1993. A 2004 traffic jam—or traffic disturbance—that upset just one lane (not to mention more than one lane), would upset the entire expressway. Traffic would begin to pile up for kilometres and hours on end. The relative lack of exits (only ten for the entire stretch) could further compound the problem. As it forms a