A large residential community in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, has begun to reserve parking spaces for people visiting their elderly parents, making it easier for children to drop by on a regular basis.

The Cuiyuan community in the eastern city's Xihu district is home to about 10,000 residents, almost 20 percent of whom are age 60 or older - and most of them live alone.

To encourage people to visit elderly relatives, the community management office has marked 18 parking spaces that can be preordered and used for free on Saturdays and Sundays from 8 am to 7 pm. The maximum stay is five and a half hours, according to Shen Yifan, director of the office.