Essay from China Economic Net (Published 2004-05-11)
In the application for the Olympic Games and presentations made prior to the voting, Beijing and the Chinese Government made the commitment on environment and transportation, two issues that are sensitive in holding Olympics and of concern to the world: The number of days when air quality is good would exceed two-thirds of the total; vehicle exhaust index would meet Euro III standard; more than 90 per cent of buses used in urban transport would consume clean fuel or meet clean vehicle exhaust standard; the city would work on rail transit and rapid transit to dramatically raise the average speed of transit vehicle, alleviate traffic jams and pollution caused by car emissions.
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To coordinate the relationship between vehicles, energy and environment, people are working on clean vehicle fuels and exploring ideal sources of power. Among other things, electric vehicle, which offers energy-saving and environmental protection features, may become the most important means of transportation in this century. In the past more than a decade, car giants around the world invested heavily in the R&D of battery-powered electric vehicle. And technology of hybrid electric vehicle is reaching maturity; they are offered for sale or rental in the United States, Japan and Germany. Battery-powered electric vehicle is perceived as one of the main development trends of the automobile industry with immense development potential.
China lags behind the world's pacesetters in the field of vehicles driven by internal combustion engines for about twenty years, but in the field of electric vehicle, the gap spans only 4-5 years. It is possible for China to obtain an advantageous position by leveraging the demand of the 2008 Olympics to achieve frog-leaping development in the new round of competition in the world automobile industry. The Ministry of Science and Technology and Beijing Municipal Government set up a special fund for "Science & Technology Olympics" to support intelligent transportation and electric vehicle projects. The UNDP/GEF demonstration project of battery-powered buses was launched. Fueled by the immense demand of the Olympics, R&D of environmentally-friendly vehicle has become a new hotspot area in China's automobile industry.
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To tackle the existing major issues, experts recommend the following countermeasures. First of all, a specialized agency should be set up to study the implementation of Euro III standard. Being made up of environmental protection bureaus, fuel oil companies, public transportation corporations, automobile industry association and some carmakers, the agency needs to work out specific implementation planning on the basis of study of the standard, testing, usage and fuel oil. Secondly, it is necessary to take on trial hybrid electric vehicle technology in buses, with R&D agencies and manufactures being selected through bidding. Thirdly, it is essential to press ahead with the planning, technical standard setting and progress of parking lot construction.
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