Night Ride to Kaifeng
By Chelsea Lu & Shiny Xu Dec. 11, 2024
In central China, a new trend is taking over college campuses: late night bike rides for soup dumplings. 200,000 Chinese college students congest the roads causing traffic gridlock as they ride rented bikes towards the tourist town of Kaifeng. Ambulances and police cars line the sides of the roads with police using loudspeakers to urge the bikers to leave, all while discarded bikes lay in piles on the streets. Unfortunately, what started as four college students posting on social media about a spontaneous trip to satisfy late night cravings has now caused chaos and controversy.
While the experience fosters camaraderie and is an enjoyable respite from daily stresses, the humongous train of riders easily takes up a whole street every time, disrupting traffic flow. With busy intersections crammed full of bikers, cars are at a standstill and authorities struggle to control traffic. The local government, who previously supported and promoted the trend to increase tourism, has now closed bike lanes and prohibited bikes from leaving the city in hopes of curbing the craze, as stated by CNN. Chinese netizens have also criticized the trend for overwhelming businesses and neighborhoods, while others have asserted that there is no fault in enjoying a late night bike ride.
“It is not right for the bikers to obstruct traffic. They can go any day and anytime, and they do not have to go all together either. Blocking commuters is not worth it if it is only for cravings,” Freshman Avika Choudhary said.
Three bike renting apps declared their bikes would automatically lock if taken out of Zhengzhou and universities also took strict measures, including banning bicycles and requiring their students to have passes to leave campus, bringing a premature end to the burgeoning tradition.
About the Contributors
Shiny Xu
staff writer
Shiny Xu is a Junior at Leland High School and a Staff Writer. This is her first year in journalism. She likes theater, reading and hanging out with her friends.
Chelsea Lu
staff writer
Chelsea Lu is a staff writer and this is her first year in Journalism. She loves hanging out with friends, building legos, and rotting in bed. She also loves writing stories.
Yunseo Kim
artist
Yunseo Kim is an artist. She enjoys trying out new art and this is her second year in journalism. Outside of school, she likes to do Taekwondo, and experiment with cooking.
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