BEIJING, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Beijing has planned to turn the underground space of residential communities in packed downtown areas into convenient facilities such as vegetable markets.

According to the municipal commission of housing and urban-rural development, the clean-up of illegal rentals in underground basements in the city has been carried out since 2011. Some 3,000 underground quarters have been evacuated.

Feng Hongji from the commission said the underground space will be gradually turned into convenient facilities. Electric lifts will be installed to help senior people access the underground shopping quarters.

One of the underground quarters in Tiancun Street of Beijing's high-tech district of Haidian used to house around 110 people.

Jiang Yingkui, a community service staff in Tiancun, said tenants used to live in the basement because of the cheap rent. But the space was difficult to manage and was prone to risks like fire, lack of security and environmental problems.

The underground space has been turned into a vegetable market, and local senior residents no longer have to go several blocks away for shopping.

Hua Zhenwen, a fruit seller in the market, said he is happy to do business in the community market, where he has a stable source of customers.