City starts to issue e-bike license plate

Owners of e-bikes that meet the national e-bike safety technical standards and have China Compulsory Certifications can now apply for e-bike license plates.

Police advised e-bike owners to apply through the traffic police’s WeChat account and register their e-bike’s relevant information in advance. Then, they will receive a notice to have their license plates installed at any of the 95 service stations of Shenzhen Postal Service. The stations operate daily between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. They can also get their license plates through the postal service.

An e-bike awaits examination before having its approved license plates installed at the Xiangmixincun postal service station in Futian District yesterday. Sun Yuchen

In April 2020, Shenzhen traffic police piloted a real-name registration program for e-bike drivers in a move to curb e-bike related violations and accidents. The program was started in Bao’an District and then expanded to Guangming, Pingshan and Longhua districts as well as Dapeng New Area. Since the program’s introduction, e-bike related traffic accidents dropped by 30% in six months year on year.

Police data also showed that 98 people were killed in e-bike related accidents between January 2020 and February 2021. Among the fatalities, 58.4% of the drivers and riders failed to wear helmets. Most of the e-bike violations are illegally entering motorist lanes, going against red lights, driving under the influence of alcohol and riding against traffic directions.

A 2019 survey conducted by Shenzhen traffic police before the real-name registration program showed that nearly 92% of its 10,265 respondents would like to use e-bikes meeting the new standard jointly issued by the Central authorities including the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). The new standard that took effect April 15, 2019, allowed heavier models and higher speeds – raising the maximum speed from 20 km per hour to 25 km per hour and the maximum weight from 40 km to 55 km.

Under the new rule, police clamped down on refitted e-bikes exceeding the maximum standard and introduced the transitional period to phase out illegal e-bikes.