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BEIJING -- Starting in August, Beijing will promote the use of an cell phone app to handle minor traffic accidents in an effort to reduce traffic jams.
The Beijing Insurance Regulatory Commission said on Sunday that 172 traffic accidents were resolved via the trial version of the app, which was put in use on May 13 in some areas of the city's Haidian and Changping districts.
When a minor traffic accident occurs, users post pictures of the scene via the mobile app, and traffic police can determine responsibility and damage online. Without police presence, drivers can reach agreements and remove their vehicles away from the scene faster.
The app is suitable for accidents in which vehicles are slightly damaged and passengers sustain only minor injuries. More than 90 percent of traffic accidents in the city are considered minor.
The commission said the app will be upgraded when it is officially launched citywide in August.
Beijing has tried various means to address traffic congestion, which has been called the city's most serious "urban disease." In addition to the app, the city has moved 121 markets out of the downtown area. On July 11, the local government announced that it would speed up construction of a "subsidiary administrative center" in the suburban district of Tongzhou.
