CHINA SHUNS ELECTRIC CYCLES - August 2007

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They are cheap, petrol less and less polluting than cars for 15 million Chinese. Now a ban on battery-powered bicycles in the southern boomtown Guangzhou leaves 100,000 owners furious their mode of transport has been outlawed without warning or compensation. They can be fined and lose their bikes if they use them.

Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong province, home to 10 million people and 870,000 cars, growing by 150,000 a year, which translates into filthy air and traffic gridlock. Yet China wants more cars on the road urged on by car makers. In a globally heated world, this may sound insane to you. It did to 100 manufacturers who held a protest rally in Guangzhou seeking common sense rules.

Traffic police officers complain that electric bike riders are not trained, since they are exempt from registration fees. Police say this makes it impossible to enforce traffic regulations and led to the ban to prevent electric bikes becoming "the main mode of transport".

In January 2007, Beijing, lifted a three-year ban on electric bicycles once registered at the city's traffic administration. Authorities had complained that used batteries from bikes were hard to dispose of and pollute the environment, where it seems there is no recycling plan in place.  China's biggest city, Shanghai, on the other hand encourages electric bicycles and has 1.3 million - a total of 500,000 were added last year alone.

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