Student commutes to clog traffic

With most schools in Beijing starting a new semester and large numbers of parents driving their children to school on Monday, traffic will be extremely heavy, transportation authorities said.

The so-called congestion index - which runs from 0 to 10, indicating traffic from light to heavy - may reach 9.2 on Monday morning, the Beijing Commission of Transport said in a news release.

Monday is opening day for all universities, middle schools, primary schools and kindergartens.