(Reuters) — Hangzhou is looking like a ghost town, as authorities have closed down shops and ramped up security checks to ensure its first-ever G20 summit passes off perfectly
As of Friday (September 3), highways around the G20 venue were virtually empty except for a few cars.
Reuters journalists were warned by men who identified themselves as “neighbourhood watch volunteers” not to film in a residential area not far from the G20 venue.
In a neighbourhood near the venue, shops were closed and notices posted on doors announced security measures in force around the city during the time of the summit.
Overall many thought the huge expenditure on the event was worth it – the government is spending 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) on travel vouchers alone to encourage city residents to visit tourist attractions elsewhere and to reduce congestion.
Hangzhou resident and real estate agent Liu Wenchao said despite the inconvenience, such measures were understandable.
“Well, going out and getting these basic material needs for living, well, those things are now a little bit inconvenient. But you can understand (why). Leaders from the world’s most important 20 countries are coming for this big summit, and we all need to guarantee the security for foreigners. So we need put on our best face, Hangzhou’s most beautiful face, for the entire world,” he said.
“During the time of the summit, you can see that they’ve done a lot of preparations. Whenever I go to the subway there are security checks, including this service with a smile, they’re doing these really well and it’s a big improvement in comparison to the past,” said another resident, Qi Yan.
Construction sites, factories and power stations around the venue were closed as blue skies were visible overhead.
Hangzhou has also banned flights by drones, and has launched nearly 700 projects to refurbish expressways and waterworks.