CHONGQING (CQNEWS) -- According to a pilot plan released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and seven other ministries, China will start pilot public transport electrification projects in 15 cities such as Beijing, Shenzhen, and Chongqing, with a view to speeding up the full electrification of vehicles used in public transportation in three years.

Why Chongqing is included in the pilot cities? What does full electrification of public transport vehicles mean for Chongqing? What are the specific measures to promote the full electrification of public transport? What are possible obstacles and difficulties? We’ve conducted interviews to find out the answers to these questions.

Pilot cities play an important role in demonstrating and promoting the electrification of public transport vehicles and boosting the overall industrial development

What do public transport vehicles include?

Public transport vehicles are clearly defined in the pilot plan, which includes official vehicles, city buses, sanitation vehicles, taxis, postal courier vehicles, vehicles for urban logistics and distribution, airport vehicles, and heavy trucks in specific scenarios.

Both enterprises and relevant government departments agree that the inclusion of Chongqing into the pilot program is conducive to the expansion of electric vehicle applications and breakthroughs in the development of intelligent connected new energy vehicles in Chongqing.

With the accelerated promotion of new energy vehicles, the penetration rate of new energy in the field of public transport in Chongqing is higher than the national average level, said Changan Auto. Since 2021 Changan Auto has sold approximately 4,000 pure electric taxis in Chongqing, and the expired taxis in downtown Chongqing have been replaced by pure electric vehicles.

In 2022, 9,528 buses were operated in downtown Chongqing, of which electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles accounted for nearly 60%, up 18.4 percentage points year on year.

Chongqing has formed a strong new energy vehicle production power and a certain capacity to develop supporting facilities, and Chongqing is responsible and good at promoting the full electrification of public transport vehicles, said the Chongqing Municipal Economic and Information Technology Commission. In recent years, Chongqing has achieved initial results in demonstrative vehicle operations, infrastructure development, promotion of new technologies and new modes, and policy support systems. Chongqing has promoted the use of 120,000 new energy vehicles and built 197,100 charging piles and 141 power stations, ranking top in western China in terms of comprehensive supporting facilities. What’s more, the pilot program will help Chongqing to develop new forms of business, such as electric vehicles, freight transport, operation and maintenance, and energy services, and play an important role in demonstrating and promoting the electrification of public transport vehicles and boosting the overall industrial development.

“Costs, operation efficiency, and supporting facilities are important to the vehicles specialized for the express logistics industry. The pilot program will encourage different regions of Chongqing to speed up the construction of supporting facilities, enhance the core technology core, and effectively improve the quality and efficiency of the logistics industry.” The proportion of new energy models has reached 40%, and the comprehensive industrial competitiveness of different companies is expected to be further improved with the implementation of the above pilot program in Chongqing, said the Chongqing Branch of China Post.

To support the full electrification of vehicles used in public transport in four aspects

Chongqing will make efforts in four aspects, namely, advancing the electrification of vehicles in an all-round way, improving the charging infrastructure, promoting the innovative application of new technologies and modes, and optimizing and improving the policy support system, so as to provide support for the full electrification of vehicles in public transport, said the Chongqing Municipal Economic and Information Technology Commission.

In addition to accelerating the promotion of official vehicles, sanitation vehicles, airport vehicles, and other vehicles in specific fields, Chongqing plans to build more than 240,000 charging points and 200 exchange stations by 2025 and improve the layout of fast charging networks in expressway service areas, national and provincial main roads, and tourist attractions, so as to achieve the full coverage of supporting facilities in different townships in all districts and counties. With the leverage of the Chongqing Electric Corridor – Charging Stations for Heavy Trucks project, Chongqing will promote the full electrification of vehicles in public transport.

With the top-level policy framework in place, relevant enterprises and entities in Chongqing have come up with practical measures and made concerted efforts in the four aspects.

In accordance with the 14th Five-Year Development Plan for the Green Post, the Chongqing Branch of China Post plans to raise the proportion of new and clean energy vehicles to over 85% by 2025. At present, the company has developed two plans for promoting new energy vehicles in urban areas and rural areas.

For its part, Changan Auto will accelerate the launch of new products, coordinate with relevant industries to improve the construction of energy-supplementing infrastructure and carry out technological research and development for vehicles used in public transport to improve range and reduce long-term use costs.

According to State Grid Chongqing Electric Power Company, as all vehicles in public transport will be fully electrified, the company will combine power distribution network planning with the layout planning of charging facilities to facilitate flexible and convenient access to charging facilities. At the same time, they will improve the digitalization and intelligence of power distribution network facilities to lay a foundation for the participation of electric vehicles in the power grid interaction. (Translated by Yuki, Fathom Language Limited)