China Orders That Ban on Compact Cars Be Lifted

Copyright © 2009 National Public Radio®. For personal, noncommercial use only. See Terms of Use. For other uses, prior permission required.

MELISSA BLOCK, host:

Faced with huge traffic jams, smoggy skies and rising gas prices, the Chinese government is pushing the sale of compact, environmentally friendly cars, but before it can really promote small cars, it has to do one thing, lift restrictions on them.

NPR's Anthony Kuhn has the story from Beijing.

ANTHONY KUHN reporting:

At a cluster of car dealerships in northern Beijing, Wulengure Lura (ph) picks her way through a sprawling lot of cars. The tall and fashionably dressed ethnic Mongolian woman gravitates away from the big Beijing-made Jeep Cherokees and Shanghai-made Buicks to the economy cars, snug little Suzukis, petite Fiats and a cute little car called the QQ, which sells for less than $4,000.00.

Ms. WULENGURE LURA (Northern Beijing resident): (Foreign language spoken)

KUHN: I'm definitely interested in the small cars, she says. Most young folks go for small cars these days, but if small cars are still banned on Changan Avenue, then I'll definitely have to buy a bigger car because I live and drive around there.

Changan Avenue is Beijing's broad east/west thoroughfare, passing through Tiananmen Square. In 1999, Beijing banned small cars with engine capacities of a liter or less from the Avenue. It's one of 80 Chinese cities that restrict economy cars. Shanghai, for example, has levied a $5,000.00 fee on license plates for small cars. Local governments argue that the Chinese-made economy models are slow, unsafe, unsightly and polluting.

But analysts say Chinese carmakers have worked hard to make their products meet emissions and safety standards. As energy prices have soared, China's central government has begun emphasizing sustainable development. It's ordered local authorities to lift restrictions on small cars by the end of March. It's also promised to support research into cars that use alternative fuels and pledged tax and parking fee breaks for smaller cars.

Jia Xinguang is the Chief Analyst at the China National Automotive Industry Consulting and Development Corporation, a government think tank.

Mr. JIA XINGUANG (China National Automotive Industry Consulting and Development Corporation): (Through translator) Local governments want to limit the number of cars on the road, and they don't want to see the development of private car ownership. This raises the question of fairness. Why shouldn't citizens own cars they can afford?

KUHN: China is clearly caught between a growing desire for car ownership and the discontents of urban gridlock. Back at the car market, a customer who gave only his surname, Dung, expressed his ambivalence about making a purchase.

Mr. DUNG (Customer at car market): (Foreign language spoken)

KUHN: People should avoid buying private cars if they can, he says. It's a waste of resources, and we'd be better off developing more public transportations, subways and the like.

But public transportation in most Chinese cities is rudimentary and overcrowded, and residents are no longer content to get around on bicycles as they did a generation ago. Analyst Jia estimates there are now 3 million cars in Beijing, roughly one for every five residents, compared to one for every 40 nationwide. He says the debate over private car ownership is important and far from over.

Mr. XINGUANG: (Through Translator) How many cars will China end up having? If China had a car for every person, that would be something for the world to fear, 1.3 billion cars. There aren't that many cars on earth yet.

KUHN: So far, China's leaders have been spared having to make the unpopular decision to deny upwardly mobile Chinese private car ownership in the name of environmental protection. In the meantime, observers are waiting to see whether local governments comply and lift their restrictions on small cars and whether this leads to less pollution and traffic or more.

Anthony Kuhn, NPR News, Beijing.

Copyright ©2009 National Public Radio®. All rights reserved. No quotes from the materials contained herein may be used in any media without attribution to National Public Radio. This transcript is provided for personal, noncommercial use only, pursuant to our Terms of Use. Any other use requires NPR's prior permission. Visit our permissions page for further information.

NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by a contractor for NPR, and accuracy and availability may vary. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Please be aware that the authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio.