Urban planners have given city lawmakers guidelines on how to make city streets more people friendly. CCTV reporter Cui Hui'ao visited one such street in Shanghai to find out how those ideas are being put into practice.

Even on a hot day like this, Wukang Road in downtown Xuhui attracts many locals and travelers. People are snapping photographs, stopping in cafes and restuarants, or just browsing among the numerous boutiques. Many say it is one of their favorite streets in Shanghai.

"I'm out here in this heat today, walking the dogs, but I think this is definitely one of the best designed streets. It's got a nice big sidewalk to walk down, lots of different options. Where I am from we have lots of big streets, but not much like this. Everything is really spread out, you got different bars and stuff, cafes that have patio areas, but nothing that you can walk through like this, where you kind of feel this type of culture and comfort," said American resident Matt Waters.

One expert says the road serves as a good model for a people friendly street. It's much quieter than most streets in the city as vehicle traffic is one-way. It's also fairly narrow, which means people taking a stroll can experience what's happening on both sides of the street at the same time. These features keep people coming back.

"Streets have two functions -- one is for traffic, and the other is for human activities. Street designers often ignore the latter so a lot of the streets in Shanghai are not so well thought out. And by activities, I mean things like parking your car, drinking coffee, appreciating the greenery and waiting to get on a bus. A street should provide a space where people can have as many activities as possible. That requires planners to put in a lot of thought, such as reconfiguring a historic building into a restaurant or bar, and making full use of the surrounding environment," said Pan Haixiao, Dept. Of Urban Planning, Tongji University.

"I think it's very important for people to have a relationship with what's happening on the street. Wukang Lu has a bit more of a refined way, so it's a bit more upscale. But you still have a lot of interactions with the street -- beautiful boutiques, and window shopping, and people watching, and a lot of people sitting outside. So there is a lot of engagement with the street side and the neighborhood, which I think is a very important part of city life," said American resident Matt Waters.

Pan says there needs to be many more people friendly streets in such a big metropolis like Shanghai. In recent years, the local government has revamped several streets to make them more people friendly. Streets like Anfu Road, Jinxian Road, Shaoxing Road and Daxue Road have proven quite popular among both locals and expats.