Road to clean air starts with new energy vehicles
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E-mail China Daily, October 14, 2013
According to the capital's five-year Clear Air Action Plan unveiled in September, authorities aim to cut annual gasoline and diesel fuel consumption in 2017 by 5 percent of 2012 levels.
At the end of 2017, the number of new energy and clean-energy vehicles will reach 200,000, the Beijing government said.
The city has 5.35 million registered vehicles and, according to the Beijing environmental protection bureau, these account for 22.2 percent of PM2.5.
It said 58 percent of nitrogen oxide and 40 percent of volatile organic compounds come from vehicle emissions.
To better implement the policy, the government should first choose new energy vehicles for public transportation, according to the capital's 2013-2017 plan.
Starting this year, authorities will work out a plan to encourage more people to buy and use new energy vehicles. The plan will be implemented in 2014.
In the municipal infrastructure area, more new energy vehicles and clean-energy vehicles will be developed as buses, taxis, postal vehicles, and sanitation trucks, according to the plan.
At the end of 2017, the proportion of new energy vehicles and clean-energy vehicles will reach 65 percent of the total number of buses in Beijing.
This could see gasoline and diesel fuel consumption reduced by 40 percent on 2012 levels among buses.
Support facilities
Power supplies and support facilities must be upgraded for green vehicles.
Commuters are still concerned about safety and repair issues, and called for more support policies.
The government vows to solve the problem in the five-year plan and asked a working office to plan for gas charging stations and battery charging stations this year.
Construction of these support facilities will start in 2014.
Tongzhou district took the first step. Two hundred electric vehicles used as taxis have gone into operation recently.
The district government had set up 100 exclusive parking lots for the e-taxis, Beijing Morning Post reported.
The operation time for e-vehicles is from 6:30 am to 11 pm every day. The starting price will be 10 yuan for the first 3 kilometers and 2 yuan for each additional kilometer, the report said.
In morning and evening rush hours, at least 150 e-taxis will be on the road in Tongzhou, according to the report.
However, cabbies are only allowed to work in Tongzhou and cannot enter other districts in Beijing.
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