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Reports > Sustainable Transportation > [China at the Crossroads]

Synopsis: Since 1986, the number of vehicles on China's roads has nearly tripled, and its use of energy for transportation is up 700% since 1980. China at the Crossroads (James S. Cannon, 1998, 30 pp.) describes the implications--for the health of China's environment and population, for the energy security of China and the United States, and for global climate change--of this vast explosion in vehicle growth, and argues that the time is ripe for China to choose alternatives to petroleum-based transportation fuels and the vehicles that burn them. With little existing vehicle-related investments, China is in a position to set its sights on a transportation infrastructure based on cleaner fuels and more efficient engines. The report provides an overview of energy use in China and describes the current state of transportation development. Included are some promising ventures involving alternative fuels: large fleets of natural gas-fueled buses and taxis; a program to market electric bicycles; a state-sponsored program to put 3000 to 5000 electric vehicles on the road by 2000; and a variety of promising initiatives to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology. Research for the report involved a two-week trip to China, where the author visited leading energy research and planning institutions in four major cities.

Table 1 China's Vehicle Population
China's vehicle fleet is dominated by trucks and buses used by government and industry.

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Read Founder Joanna Underwood's comments in
The Bridge News Forum, September 29 1998

Hear interview with Founder Joanna Underwood at Electric Vehicle World

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