Who's gone from hero to zero this week in Beijing? Who has the halo of goodness shining above their heads, and whose dastardly deeds have plumbed the depths of depravity?

Hero of the week

Yellow traffic lights

The Ministry of Public Security announced this week Beijing motorists may have to stop for yellow lights in the future, signaling a complete overhaul of the capital's road system.

Beijing motorists are known for their liberal interpretation of traffic lights. The current understanding seems to be that green, yellow and red lights mean drivers must floor the accelerator.

A rumor had been circulating for the last week that motorists who ran yellow lights would be caught on camera and then fined, but authorities denied such a measure was in the pipeline. The closer monitoring of drivers comes after a motorist was caught on camera running a yellow light in Zhejiang Province. The driver lost his court appeal after claiming that running yellow lights was not illegal.

In China, you can only pass a yellow light if you've nudged your front bumper over the white line in time. Motorists aren't required to stop or give way to pedestrians, as many misguided souls might have thought.

Villain of the week

Ex-con hits rock bottom

Tang Zhenping from Beijing's southeast Tongzhou district lost everything - his wife, his kids and his freedom - when he went to prison for unspecified financial crimes.

There was only one new low that Tang could stoop to: building an energy-efficient electric car on his own. Funded by cash from "several police friends he met in jail," Tang's car has already caught the attention of the local traffic police.

Complete with wings and a fan at the front, the battery-powered monstrosity looks suspiciously like its previous owner may have been Dick van Dyke.

Local residents who have test-driven the car say it is capable of speeds of up to 70 kilometers per hour, more than double the average speed cars are capable of reaching on Beijing roads.

Authorities have said he will not be able to drive his vehicle on Beijing roads until they are sure how exactly to classify his mechanical contraption.