Shanghai obeys fireworks ban

The Spring Festival holiday was a much quieter affair in Shanghai this year with the enforcement of a new citywide fireworks ban.

Introduced in response to concerns over air pollution, the ban came into effect at the beginning of this year, prohibiting the use of pyrotechnics at any time within the city's outer ring road.

As a result the use of fireworks and firecrackers in this area dropped to zero, according to Shanghai police, despite it being a centuries-old tradition for Chinese to usher in the Lunar New Year with pyrotechnics.