(BEIJING, November 26) -- Thanks to its favorable price policy, public transportation has become a priority for citizens in the Olympic host city of Beijing when going out.

The local government made a series of adjustments to lower the bus and subway fares in 2007. Passengers who pay by transport card can get a 60 percent discount and students only need to pay 20 percent of the original price as of the beginning of this year.

On October 7, the Beijing subway ticket fare lowered from 3 yuan to 2 yuan and passengers no longer need to pay for transfers between subway lines.

The change reduced expenditure per subway rider by 1.3 yuan, and the new adjustments on subway and bus ticket fares have made the city the cheapest in terms of public transportation costs.

In 2007, the Beijing government increased the financial subsidy on public transportation to 4.15 billion yuan a year to make up for the new ticket prices. From 2005 to 2010, the government will give a total investment of 71.5 billion yuan on public transportation, taking about 45 percent of the overall investment on the city's transportation infrastructure construction.