Engineer Song Youzhou stands in front of the transit elevated bus TEB-1 on Aug. 3, 2016, in Qinhuangdao, Hebei Province of China. (Photo : Getty Images)
The production center of China's "straddling bus," which has a "moving tunnel" design that allows cars to pass underneath it, has been reported by local media to be deserted with no sign of construction, raising doubts on its much-publicized launch next year.
In December, Huaying Group, which is based in the Chinese capital of Beijing, entered an agreement with the city government of Zhoukou in eastern China's Henan Province to build the Transit Elevated Bus (TEB) at a manufacturing and research center in the city.
The TEB, which went viral earlier this week after pictures of its test run were widely circulated on the Internet, was hailed as a potential solution to China's worsening traffic woes.
However, in a report by the China Daily newspaper on Tuesday, the proposed site is now covered in thick weeds and nearby farmers feeding their sheep in the area.
A local farmer, surnamed Yuan, was cited in the report as saying the groundbreaking ceremony was held in the previous month.
"They built a platform. People who stood on the platform were dressed up. It seemed like it was a big day, but there has been no activity since," Yuan said.
Du Guangxian, a local official, said the project is experiencing delays.
"The environmental impact assessment of the project has not been approved yet, and many documents are still waiting to be signed," Du told the Beijing Youth Daily.
Under the contract, which includes an investment of 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) Huaying Group is expected to produce a thousand TEB units each year.
When asked why the groundbreaking ceremony was held before the deal was given full approval, Du said it was meant to push the development of the project.
"We heard concerns about the project before. Some doubted its technology and feasibility, but we eventually decided to initiate the project and then evaluate whether it is a good project or not," he said.
The TEB is projected to be put into operation in a year with an expected output value of 5 billion to 10 billion yuan.
