China to make urban life more elderly-friendly

BEIJING - China will speed up its efforts to formulate a system of standards on elderly-accommodating functions and designs in buildings and public facilities, according to a national meeting on aging held Wednesday.

A series of rules governing the planning of urban living areas and road traffic will be revised to make buildings and facilities more elderly-friendly, according to the meeting.

In China's revised Law for the Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly, which took effect on Monday, a special chapter was dedicated to ensuring comfortable living environments for the elderly.

China will also accelerate the construction of elderly care facilities in the next couple of years, as part of its efforts to cope with its fast-aging population, according to officials.

By the end of 2012, China had 44,000 institutions that were created to serve elders.