China orders curbs on government departments’ car use

BEIJING, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) — China’s State Council, or cabinet, has ordered all central government bodies to use “economic, energy-saving, environmentally friendly and domestically manufactured” automobiles and ban the private use of official cars.

“All units should tighten the regulation of cars and cut down the size of the fleet to a controlled scale. The number of automobiles should not be increased unless a new department is formed,” said a circular issued earlier this week by the Government Office Administration of the State Council.


It said excess cars, or those violating pollution standards, should be removed from service by year-end.

The circular asked all officials to “strictly abide by” regulations on car use and be first movers in the use of domestic, low-emission, economic and manual-transmission cars.

“Except for special needs, all units, in principle, should not use off-road vehicles,” it said.

Xinhua