Remember that Chinese elevated bus that could glide over moving traffic? It seems the project is now dead and the focus of a police investigation. Beijing authorities are looking into the company behind the Transit Elevated Bus, or TEB, which is suspected of illegal fundraising.
The TEB is an electrically powered vehicle that moves atop special tracks built on either side of the road and is able to carry 300 passengers without affecting road traffic moving below. It was supposed to be the solution to China’s notorious traffic congestion, but after a test run last year, the project has mostly been idle since then.
Police have detained more than 30 people associated with Huaying Kailai, a company that has been selling an investment product to raise money for the development of the bus. According to a statement from Beijing’s Dongcheng district police bureau, the authorities are working on recovering funds from the company and are advising affected TEB investors to lodge their complaints to local police stations.
At least 72 individual investors have filed lawsuits against Bai Zhiming, who runs Huaying Kailai, and his company for private lending disputes. Bai is also the CEO of TEB Technology Development, a company that purchased the patent for the elevated bus. According to a police document, Huaying Kailai and its subsidiaries had raised around $1.3 billion by October of 2016.
Source: Quartz | Image via SlashGear