Hangzhou to not implement new vehicle purchase restriction policy in the short-term

Recently rumors have begun circulating in the Chinese media that Zhejiang's provincial capital of Hangzhou will institute a new vehicle registration policy similar to Shanghai and other cities in April. According to a report appearing on zjol.com.cn today, the city's Ministry of Transport denied the rumors, stating that enacting and implementing such a policy would require a good deal of preparation time. In particular, considerations will have to be made for vehicles registered outside of the city.

Hangzhou's traffic congestion is very severe, which has also led to increasingly worse air quality within the city. Hangzhou CPC Representative and Lawyer Hu Xiangfu has drawn parallels between the city and Shanghai, and has recommended the implementation of policies limiting the number of new vehicles registered. Mr. Hu also advocates the city's raising taxes on second vehicles bought by households.

The municipal Ministry of Transport's officials were especially cautious to point out that the city will have to deal with vehicles registered in and out of the city differently, in order to prevent Hangzhou citizens from applying for license plates in one the neighboring cities. "It is specifically for this reason that Hangzhou is not considering implementing [this kind of] policy in the short-term," a representative stated, adding that "if such a policy were to be employed, it would have to wait until Hangzhou's traffic congestion reaches a certain level."