Supplementary to the new regulation on China's roads, Hubei province has ruled that drivers must give way to pedestrians, many of whom said they look forward to seeing more provinces adopt the rule.

"Pedestrians are a less-advantaged group on the road than cars and should be protected," said Lu Xiang, 30, who spent seven years in Hawaii studying for a doctorate and now works as a computer engineer in Beijing.

"When I returned to Beijing last year, it took me a while to get accustomed to Chinese drivers once again. They never let you go first and some even blast the horn at you. But in Hawaii, all cars must stop when the drivers see pedestrians in front of them."