In the anticipation of the 2008 Olympic Games, authorities in Beijing have devoted themselves to new efforts to improve citizens' manners and upgrade the city's image. According to the state press reports, the efforts have proved fruitful so far, however, the city still has a long way to go before perfection.

According to a study by the People's University of China, the incidents of littering, spitting, flaunting traffic rules and queue-jumping have all started to decline since 2005, the Xinhua news agency reports.

Also the "civic index" - a measure of good behavior - has improved by 3.85 points and now stands at 69.06. The authorities have set a target of 72-78 points by 2008 when the city hosts the Olympic Games.

"The government and citizens still have a lot of things to do to improve their public behavior," Xinhua quoted Professor Sha Lianxiang, who headed the study, as saying.

The city's government has been taking advantage of the major events in preparation of the Olympic Games to promote sincerity and honesty among its people. Last year, the government also launched a "smile" campaign and recently, it designated the 11th day of each month as anti queue-jumping day.