Beijing introduces multi-purpose payment card for international visitors

The Chinese capital has recently introduced the Beijing Pass, a multi-purpose card for international visitors that simplifies payments for transportation, tourist sites, and shopping centers.

The pass offers a convenient solution for those who might not want to go through the effort of registering for WeChat Pay or Alipay, the two most commonly used payment methods in China.

"Beijing Pass is a versatile transportation card for foreign visitors exploring China in over 300 cities," Han Xiang, a station supervisor at Beijing Subway, explained.

A China Global Television Network (CGTN) reporter and a French student in Beijing took a spin in Beijing using this card and interviewed foreign residents and tourists about their thoughts.

"I think the Beijing Pass sounds like a really good idea. Especially if you are just traveling for a short period of time and you can't kind of set up all the bank accounts and things like that that maybe I could do as a student. So I definitely recommend it to family and friends who are visiting for a short amount of time," said Chloe Woodburn, an Australian student in Hangzhou traveling to Beijing.

"I would think the Beijing Pass, for sure, it's a really useful thing to consider for the next time. It's really useful to have the same card to use where we go," Spanish visitor Aitana Tejero said.

To enhance the visitor experience, the Beijing subway has also introduced multilingual translators at several key stations to assist foreigners.

After the day of testing out the pass, the student from France found that it would be helpful for foreign visitors coming to explore all Beijing has to offer.

"I like it and I would recommend it for people visiting Beijing because you don't need WeChat or Alipay," he said.

Beijing introduces multi-purpose payment card for international visitors

Beijing introduces multi-purpose payment card for international visitors

Authorities in east China's coastal provinces Zhejiang and Jiangsu have launched emergency evacuation of residents to help mitigate the impact of Typhoon Bebinca -- the 13th typhoon of the year.

In Zhejiang's Pinghu City, communities have started the relocation work. The old town area of Xindai, home to about 1,400 permanent residents, including some 30 percent elderly, has been a focus of evacuation efforts.

Over 50 elderly residents have been evacuated to a temporary courtyard shelter, where they have plenty of space for meals and walking around. The shelter is equipped with folding beds, food, drinking water and medical staff standing by to address any health concerns.

The province also raised its emergency response for typhoon prevention to level II.

In Jiangsu Province, Nantong City has conducted comprehensive safety inspections and organized evacuations in key areas.

Nantong's Rugao Port on the Yangtze River was shutdown on Sunday afternoon.

All workers at the Zhangjiagang-Jingjiang-Rugao Bridge construction site -- located at a river shoal -- are evacuated ahead of the storm attack.

"From the temporary ferry to the Rugao-Zhangjiagang ferry, we have evacuated a total of 428 people. So far, all construction personnel of the Zhangjinggao Bridge within the scope of this construction site have been evacuated to our shelter," said Ding Xiaoxing, chief engineer of Rugao Water Affairs Department.

Authorities in Nantong has evacuated more than 1,400 people and over 200 vessels along the coastal area under its jurisdiction.

Making landfall in Shanghai on Monday morning, Typhoon Bebinca is the most powerful tropical cyclone directly hitting the Chinese financial hub in more than seven decades.

Zhejiang, Jiangsu evacuate residents as Typhoon Bebinca lands in east China