If you've a car in Beijing (ack! traffic chaos!) with one of those shiny new ETC systems (ETC as in Electronic Toll Collect -- where you zip by the freeway toll gates without paying), you're in luck. All freeways in Beijing (except for the Jingjintang Freeway) are now ETC-friendly. (Yay!)

On all freeways (except for Jingjintang, of course), you can now swipe your card and pay without using cash. You have to touch in at the start of the trip, however, and touch out using the same card. (It's a bit like the Beijing Subway, we admit, except for the fact that you hand the card over to the toll gate personnel.) This technology is like ETC in name -- but precisionist call the thing MTC (or Manual Toll Collect).

ETC toll gates with automatic barriers, however, are still pretty rare. They're only "there" on the Northern and Southern Airport Freeways, as well as some exits on the Badaling, Jingcheng, Jingtong (central Tongzhou only!), Jingshen (Bailu central toll gate only!), Jingkai and Jingshi Freeways. If the toll gate official thinks your car shouldn't be there (but you have a working ETC device), flash your headlights or sound your horn -- the guy will "scoot" (so to speak) in good time.

And you'll pass through, all paid and stuff like that, while saving time.

Life sure is sweet.