A community in Guangling District in Yangzhou City, East China's Jiangsu Province, provides "filial piety parking space," designated free parking spaces, for those who have arrived to visit their parents and other elders on weekends and/or during festivals. The free parking space is set up to increase the sense of happiness and satisfaction of the elderly people in the community.

The residential community has planned 13 such parking spaces and six of them are now available for use.

Most of the residents in this community are relocated from households in the old district. Therefore, the community has a large number of elderly people. There are 1,451 elderly people over 60 years old in the community, accounting for 18.3 percent of the total population. As most of them do not live with their children, when their children come to visit them by car, they find it is difficult to find a parking space in the community.

In order to provide convenience for such weekend or holiday visitors, the community worked with its property-management company to come up with the idea of the filial piety parking spaces.

People are allowed to park in the community for 5.5 hours for free as long as they make an appointment with the property manager in advance when they visit parents over 60 years old.

There are 14 residential buildings in the community, and the 13 specific parking spaces are arranged in a location with convenient access and space, said Li Xia, manager of the community's property management company. The parking spaces are in the same color and pattern, and they are easy to identify.

"Since the filial piety parking spaces were put into use on June 25, we have received a few calls to reserve a parking space," Li said.

"We are so happy to see the specific parking spaces. When my children come to see me, they don't need to worry about the parking space any more, "said a resident aged 71 who has lived in the community for four years.

(Source: Yangtse Evening Post/ Translated and edited by Women of China)