The streets of Wenzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province got a new look this week, when the city's first-ever female traffic wardens clocked on for duty.

Although the country employs very few women traffic wardens, Wenzhou's band of young, good-looking girls in smart uniforms has already drawn plenty of attention from passers-by. Some drivers have even stopped to take pictures of them, the city's traffic police bureau said.

Wenzhou currently has just seven female wardens, each aged between 19 and 26. They were chosen from a group of 30 applicants after successfully meeting a range of criteria, covering such things as height, eyesight, posture and general health.

Once selected, the former supermarket cashiers, hotel maids and restaurant waitresses underwent a month's intensive police training to learn the key elements of the job, such as positioning, stance and traffic control.

The police bureau said the female wardens are paid slightly higher than their male colleagues, but this is because they work longer hours and in key locations.

Yan Yulian, 23, from the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region is one of Wenzhou's new wardens. "I'm very happy standing in the road controlling traffic. My parents and family are also happy I have found such a good job," she said.

The Hangzhou-based Urban Express newspaper quoted a pedestrian surnamed Chen as saying: "People are used to seeing male traffic wardens. The sudden appearance of policewomen is a sight for sore eyes."

A taxi driver, surnamed Li, told the same newspaper that he too was pleased by the move.

"I would be more than happy to be stopped by one of them if I broke the traffic rules," he joked.

According to Wenzhou police, women are more amiable than men when it comes to traffic control. Their looks and way of speaking tend to be more acceptable to motorists.

But their trainer Li Jian warns motorists not to be fooled by their soft appearance.

"These girls are tough, but they know they represent the image of Wenzhou, so they pay special attention to their manners," he said.

(China Daily May 18, 2007)