What happened here?!

這地方發生了什麼事！

Whoooaa!!

哇！!

Hi, welcome to China Uncensored.

嗨，歡迎收看「中國解密」

I'm your host Chris Chappell.

我是主持人 Chris Chappell

Behold, the streets of China:

看哪，空蕩蕩的中國

empty!

街道

Huge, sprawling megacities

大片蔓延的巨型城市

populated only by the promise of what might have been.

住在這裡的人卻寥寥可數

You're looking at China's meteoric GDP growth.

你見到的是中國曇花一現的 GDP 成長數字

You see, when there's construction, GDP goes up.

因為有工地蓋高樓，GDP 就會跟著成長

But what those GDP figures don't factor in

但是 GDP 沒有計算的是

is whether or not anyone actually ends up living in those cities.

究竟會不會有人真的在這些城市居住

You know the saying, "If you build it they will come?"

還記得那句電影對白嗎？ 「如果你把球場蓋好了，他們就會來」

Well, in China, they didn't come.

但在中國 他們並沒有出現

These are China's ghost cities.

這些是中國的鬼城

This is Lüliang.

這是呂粱市

Its 160 million dollar airport gets no more than five flights a day.

耗費一億六千萬美元搭蓋的機場 一天起降的航班不超過五個

Most of the apartments meant for the 300,000 planned residents sit empty,

計畫容納三十萬居民的公寓多數成了空屋

built on land that used to be irrigation ditches for the farmers.

建築物搭建在過去做為農民灌溉用的溝渠上

The farmers are still around,

農民還存在著

but the water isn't.

但是水源已經不見蹤影

Then there's the city of Ordos in Inner Mongolia.

這是內蒙古的鄂爾多斯市

A million people were supposed to live here.

這裡本來計劃會有一百萬人口居住於此

But only one in every fifty buildings is filled.

但是每五十棟建築才只有一棟住滿人

But surely there can't be that many of these ghost cities in China right?!

中國該不會充斥著這麼多的鬼城吧

Well, Baidu,

呃，百度

basically the Chinese version of Google,

中國版谷歌搜尋引擎

set out to find the answer.

替我們找到了答案

They analyzed location data from their 700 million users.

他們針對七億用戶的所在地資料進行分析

And found more than 50 ghost cities across China.

發現中國有超過五十個鬼城

50!

五十個！

So why is this such a common phenomenon?

為什麼鬼城成了一個普遍的現象？

Part of it has to do with the government's massive push for urbanization.

部分原因跟政府大力推動都市化有關

According to the "National New-type Urbanization Plan”—

根據「國家新型城鎮化規劃」

yes that's what it's called—

沒錯，這正是計畫的名稱

by 2020, 60 percent of the Chinese population will be living in cities.

到了2020年，百分之六十的中國人將居住在城市

That's more than 800 million people.

總人口數超過八億人

So it's not exactly an issue of

所以這並非是供過於求的

too much supply and too little demand nationwide.

全國性的問題

It's all about location.

而是攸關地點

Real estate prices are already so high in the top-tier cities

一線城市的房地產價格已經飆高

that the average worker will never be able to own a home in their lifetime.

一般來說 勞動階級人口這輩子絕對不可能買得起房子

That's why so many people live in urban areas just outside the major cities—

這是為什麼有許多人住在市中心外圍的都市區

for example, in recently urbanized places like this one near Beijing.

例如 類似這個在北京周邊近期內都市化的據點

It offers lousy hospitals,

這樣的據點提供了醫療設備簡陋的醫院

over-crowded schools,

學生人數爆滿的學校

no bus terminals,

卻沒有巴士站

no movie theaters,

沒有電影院

only two tiny parks,

只有兩座小公園

and 700,000 neighbors.

以及七十萬名鄰居

But living here with a three-hour commute to central Beijing

但是花費三個小時通勤時間前往北京

is still more appealing than living in a beautifully designed city

也比居住在風景秀麗的山西省大城卻找不到工作

in Shanxi Province that has no jobs.

更加吸引人

Remember Lüliang?

還記得呂梁市嗎？

In 2010, its GDP growth was a staggering 21 percent.

2010 年時，該城的 GDP 驚人的成長了 21%

Last year, it was negative 2 percent.

去年，它的 GDP竟達負 2%

That's because it was coal mining town—

那是因為它是採煤大城

and coal used to be big business in China.

煤炭過去在中國需求量很大

But with the economic slowdown,

但是伴隨經濟成長趨緩

a lot of steel makers reduced production.

許多製鋼廠也跟著降低了產量

They stopped buying so much coal,

因此不再大量採購煤炭

and coal mines went out of business.

採礦業跟著走下坡

Then there's corruption.

再來是貪腐問題

Officials in China get promotions based on GDP growth.

中共官員依據 GDP 成長的數字得以升官

So Lüliang officials had been boosting GDP

因此呂梁的官員們為加速 GDP 成長

by building way more infrastructure than was actually needed.

搭蓋了許多超過實際需求的基礎建設

Business also used to be booming in Lüliang's Liquor City area,

呂梁管轄區內的「酒都」汾陽市也曾經繁華一時

where they made baijiu,

這裡出產白酒

a strong Chinese liquor that was very popular with officials.

這類中國烈酒在中共高官之間十分受到歡迎

But then baijiu became a target in Xi Jinping's "anti-corruption campaign"—

卻成了習近平「打貪腐」的目標

and now business is on the rocks.

釀酒業如今也變得蕭條

And you know what else became a target in the "anti-corruption campaign"?

你知道還有什麼成了「打貪腐」的目標嗎？

The mayor.

呂梁市市長

And a bunch of other government officials, who also got sacked.

一堆中共高官接連遭到革職

Anyway, the city government soon ran out of money.

總之，市政府的財庫不久就見底

And that's just one city.

這只是其中一個城市

According to Wade Shepard, author of "Ghost Cities,"

根據《中國鬼城》一書作者韋德‧薛普的說法

there are 20 to 40 million empty apartments in China.

中國有二千至四千萬棟空屋公寓

Now you'd think the central government would learn its lesson,

你或認為中央政府應該學到了教訓

and put an end to all this excess building.

不再過度搭蓋建築

But it's not so simple.

但是事情可沒這麼簡單

Because local officials have their own plans and incentives.

因為地方官員自有一套計畫與獎勵辦法

According to Xinhua,

根據新華社的報導

the governments of various cities across the country

中國境內各大城市

have development plans that, when put together,

都有發展計畫若將之整合起來

would provide housing for 3.4 billion people.

共可提供 34 億人口的住屋

That's more than double China's actual population.

這個數字超過中國實際人口數的一倍

So unless China plans to switch to a mandatory Seven-Child Policy soon,

所以除非中國打算推行七胎化政

they're in big trouble.

否則他們的麻煩可大了

So what do you think?

你有什麼看法呢？

If you were a ghost, which Chinese ghost city would you live in?

如果你是幽魂你想要住在中國哪個鬼城？

Leave your comments below,

將你的想法留言在下方

and subscribe and like China Uncensored on Facebook.

訂閱「中國解密」並到中國解密臉書按讚

Once again I'm Chris Chappell. See you next time.

我是 Chris Chappell，下次見

Xi Jinping

習近平

Zhou Yongkang

周永康

Mao. Mao. Mao.

毛～ 毛～ 毛～.

Barack Obama

巴拉克·歐巴馬

Obama

歐巴馬

I love Chris

我喜歡 Chris

OFC?!

OFC?!

Wow, some crazy things happened in 2015.

哇，2015 年發生了許多瘋狂的事情

Let's just say I don't think Xi Jinping will "let old acquaintance be forgot."

讓我們這麼說吧 習近平可不會忘了他的老相識