The first administrative regulation in the field of urban public transportation in China, the "Regulations on Urban Public Transportation," will be implemented on December 1st. The Regulation emphasizes that the planning of urban comprehensive transportation system should clarify the principle of prioritizing the development of public transportation, and the urban people's government is the responsible subject for developing urban public transportation. Adhering to the public welfare nature of urban public transportation, the government is the responsible entity for developing urban public transportation, and encourages and supports social capital to participate in its infrastructure construction and operation. The introduction of new regulations is a timely rain for the public transportation industry. Cheng Shidong, Director of the Urban Transportation Center of the Comprehensive Transportation Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission, said that the entire industry is facing two unprecedented challenges: firstly, the passenger volume has continued to decline in the past decade, and a large proportion of elderly people are free of charge. The overall operating income is declining significantly, and the corresponding government subsidy pressure is increasing. The financial sustainability of the entire industry is facing serious challenges. Some policies and measures in the Regulations are very targeted, providing institutional guarantees for solving these two problems. Why do we still emphasize bus priority when there are fewer people taking the bus? Cheng Shidong, Director of the Urban Transportation Center at the Comprehensive Transportation Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission: I believe that the priority of public transportation will not be weakened due to the decline in passenger volume. Due to the extremely limited road resources in Chinese cities, it is not allowed for everyone to drive to and from work, especially during rush hour. Some people need to choose intensive public transportation modes that occupy less road resources, which can maximize the efficiency of public transportation in the city. On the other hand, public transportation is a green mode of transportation, which is a very important measure to reduce environmental pollution and carbon emissions. In order to make our sky bluer and achieve our dual carbon goals, we also need to continue to adhere to the development strategy of prioritizing public transportation. What institutional safeguards are involved in the new regulations? Cheng Shidong, Director of the Urban Transportation Center at the Comprehensive Transportation Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission: The entire Regulation is very comprehensive, such as improving the attractiveness and competitiveness of public transportation, including priority of road rights and station coverage, making it more convenient for people to get to stations. To address the issue of financial sustainability, it is generally necessary to combine government support with corporate innovation. How will future public transportation services make life more convenient? Cheng Shidong, Director of the Urban Transportation Center at the Comprehensive Transportation Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission: I think customized public transportation still has great potential. Nowadays, many cities have opened customized commuter buses and educational buses, which have achieved good results. In addition, there is also great potential for the development of community buses and subway shuttle buses in the future. Of course, this requires better and smaller car models and better business models, including whether they can be opened up to private social capital enterprises for operation, which has a lot of room for improvement. (New Society)