Q: Dear Uncle Wang,

I have seen many fallen leaves on the streets of the former French concession over the past two weeks. Why haven't sanitation workers picked them up?

A: Fallen leaves can be seen piling up on some of the roads in the former French concession recently because they were left there on purpose. Around this time last year, the Xuhui district government introduced a trial scheme to have the streets full of fallen leaves on Wukang Road and Yuqing Road. Instead of cleaning the leaves off the streets, sanitation workers leave them as a kind of decoration. The authorities said the fallen leaves can help visitors and residents take in the autumn scene.

After the scheme was introduced, many people came to the famous historical roads in Xuhui district just to admire the leaves in autumn. During the weekends you can even find people taking photos of the leaves or people picking up the leaves from the ground as a kind of souvenir.

The few roads were chosen by the government because they can best represent the culture of old Shanghai. Dotted with phoenix and ginkgo trees, Wukang Road is home to many historical buildings and former residences of celebrities, such as the late renowned Chinese writer Ba Jin.

This year the authorities have decided to extend the trial scheme from the intersection of Hunan Road and Wukang Road to Yongfu Road, and from the intersection of Fuxing Road West and Wukang Road to Gaoyou Road. The best time to see the leaves is from the middle to the end of November.

There will be a photography competition to encourage people to capture the autumn landscape in Xuhui district. What's more, the backpack containers of sanitation workers, which allow them to clean up garbage at anytime, have been thoughtfully designed in yellow to be in tune with the color of the leaves.

Now Putuo district will have the leaves on streets as well. From Monday through December 7 fallen leaves along Huaxi Road and Tongbai Road in the district will be left untouched. The two roads were chosen because there is not much traffic and the roads are quiet, making them suitable for pedestrians to walk on.

Although the leaves on the designated streets are not cleaned immediately, it doesn't mean the leaves are left on the streets for days. Actually, the leaves will still be cleaned once a day to make sure traffic and pedestrians' safety are not affected. When there is air pollution or on rainy days the streets will be cleaned constantly as well.