Cleaner Fuel Incentive Scheme for light buses

     The Transport Department has reminded public light bus and private light bus owners that the Light Buses Using Cleaner Fuel Incentive Scheme will end on December 31. Public light bus and private light bus owners should observe the deadline for submission of application under the scheme.

     To improve air quality, the Government launched an incentive scheme in August, 2002, to encourage owners to replace their diesel light buses with LPG light buses early to further reduce emissions from motor vehicles. Eligible diesel public light bus owners who replaced their diesel public light buses with LPG or electric ones could apply for a one-off grant of $60,000 or $80,000 respectively. Eligible diesel private light bus owners who replace their diesel private light buses with LPG ones could apply for remission of the first registration tax of the replacement LPG private light buses.
 
     To be eligible for the one-off grant, diesel public light bus owners must scrap and de-register their diesel public light buses before the vehicles reach 10 years of age, by December 31, 2005, and replace them with LPG/Electric public light buses within one month from the date of de-registration. They must also submit the applications for the one-off grant to the Transport Department on or before December 31, 2005 or within one month from the date of de-registration of their diesel public light buses, whichever date is the later.

     To be eligible for the first registration tax remission, diesel private light bus owners must scrap and de-register their diesel private light buses before the vehicles reach 10 years of age, by December 31, 2005, and replace them with LPG private light buses within one month from the date of de-registration. They must also submit the applications for the first registration tax remission to the Transport Department when applying for registration of the replacement LPG private light buses.

     The Light Buses Using Cleaner Fuel Incentive Scheme is part of the comprehensive programme implemented by the Government since 1999 to reduce the particulate and nitrogen oxides emissions by 80% and 30% respectively from motor vehicles for improving air quality.

     "The comprehensive programme is in good progress," a government spokesman said citing that the suspended particulates and nitrogen oxides emitted by motor vehicles in the urban areas had been reduced by 79% and 41% respectively in September, 2005.

     "Nowadays, virtually all taxis use LPG as fuel. Smoky vehicles have also been reduced by about 80%," he added.

     Pamphlets and application forms of the incentive scheme are available at the Licensing Offices of the Transport Department, the four Vehicle Examination Centres of the Transport Department and the District Offices. They can also be downloaded from the Transport Department homepage (http://www.td.gov.hk).

Ends/Monday, December 19, 2005
Issued at HKT 16:00