Bike pathChina
7. Bike path
A bike path is a part of a road or a separate route intended primarily or exclusively for people riding bicycles. It may be physically separated from motor traffic, marked on the road surface or identified by traffic signs.
Bike paths may be one-way, two-way or shared with other road users. The permitted users, direction of travel, priority rules and obligation to use the path depend on local traffic signs and regulations.
Wikimedia.org • luchangjiang~鲁昌江 • CC BY-SA
Is a Chinese non-motor-vehicle lane the same as a bicycle-only path?
No. The term 非机动车道 means a non-motor-vehicle lane. Its permitted users can include qualifying electric bicycles and other legally recognised non-motor vehicles. Do not interpret a cycling symbol as proof that only pedal bicycles may use the lane.
🔗 xzfg.moj.gov.cn • Mainland China — Law Article 57; Regulation 70 obstruction exception
🔗 jtgl.beijing.gov.cn • Beijing Traffic Police — full Road Traffic Safety Law, 2021 amended text
🔗 samr.gov.cn • SAMR — full implementing Regulations, 2017 amended text
Mandatory path for cyclists.
English • Traffic sign 示31 • Non-motorised vehicles only. The road is reserved for non-motorised vehicles; only explicit supplementary information can limit it further to bicycles.
中文 • 示31 • 非机动车行驶。 该道路仅供非机动车通行;只有明确的辅助说明才能进一步限定为自行车。
Sources
🔗 Commons.wikimedia.org
🔗 Openstd.samr.gov.cn • 国家标准全文公开 • GB 5768.2-2022(含第1号修改单)
🔗 Upload.wikimedia.org • 标准原文镜像 • PDF第64页
SVG source: Beijing Traffic Management Bureau • Public domain • Original revision 2021-12-15. Wikimedia original unmodified.
Must cyclists use a provided non-motor-vehicle lane in China?
Yes. The national Law requires non-motor vehicles to use that lane. Where none exists, they travel on the right side of the carriageway. An ordinary pedestrian pavement is a different part of the road.
🔗 xzfg.moj.gov.cn • Mainland China — Law Article 57; Regulation 70 obstruction exception
🔗 jtgl.beijing.gov.cn • Beijing Traffic Police — full Road Traffic Safety Law, 2021 amended text
🔗 samr.gov.cn • SAMR — full implementing Regulations, 2017 amended text
What should I do if a Chinese non-motor-vehicle lane is obstructed?
The implementing Regulations permit temporarily using the adjacent motor lane where an obstruction makes the non-motor lane unusable. Return promptly after passing it. This is a limited obstruction exception, rather than permission to ride continuously in the motor lane.
🔗 xzfg.moj.gov.cn • Mainland China — Law Article 57; Regulation 70 obstruction exception
🔗 jtgl.beijing.gov.cn • Beijing Traffic Police — full Road Traffic Safety Law, 2021 amended text
🔗 samr.gov.cn • SAMR — full implementing Regulations, 2017 amended text

Traffic rules
China