Cleaning the Air at Street Level

Street Level Air Pollution

Progress of Vehicle Emissions Control Measures

Tightening Fuel and Vehicle Emission Standards

Cleaner Alternatives to Diesel Vehicles

Controlling Emissions from the Remaining Diesel Vehicles

Strengthening Emission Inspection and Enforcement

Promoting Better Vehicle Maintenance and Eco-driving

Promoting Electric Vehicle Adoption

Building a Local Vehicle Emission Database and Introducing In-use Compliance Program

Roadside Air Quality Trends

 

Street Level Air Pollution

In our busy streets, air pollution is mainly caused by motor vehicles, particularly diesel vehicles such as trucks, buses and light buses which emit a large amount of particulates and nitrogen oxides (NOx). The pollutants are often trapped at roads flanked by very tall buildings, making it difficult to clean up roadside air pollution.

Photo of busy street

 

Progress of Vehicle Emissions Control Measures

The Government has adopted an integrated vehicle emission control strategy, which has the following 6 major elements, to tackle roadside air pollution issues:

  • Adopt tighter fuel and vehicle emission standards;
  • Adopt cleaner alternatives to diesel vehicles where practicable;
  • Control emissions from the remaining diesels with devices that reduce pollutants;
  • Strengthen vehicle emission inspections and enforcement against grossly emitting vehicles;
  • Promote better vehicle maintenance and eco-driving habits; and
  • Promote electric vehicle (EV) adoption.

 

Latest Initiatives

  • Tightened the emission standards for first registered motorcycles to Euro 4 from October 2020, and for first registered light buses (with a design weight of more than 3.5 tonnes) and buses (with a design weight of not more than 9 tonnes) to Euro VI from 1 March 2021;
  • Launched an incentive cum regulatory scheme in October 2020 to progressively phase out some 40,000 Euro IV Diesel Commercial Vehicles (DCVs) by end 2027. $7.1 billion was set aside for ex-gratia payment to assist the affected vehicle owners (detailed in Phasing Out Euro IV Diesel Commercial Vehicles – Ex-gratia Payment Scheme);
  • Expanded the scope of the New Energy Transport Fund (previously named Pilot Green Transport Fund) to subsidise the testing and encourage more widely the use of green innovative transport technologies for a variety of commercial transport tools;
  • Launched a $2 billion EV-charging at Home Subsidy Scheme (EHSS) in October 2020 to subsidise the installation of EV charging-enabling infrastructure in car parks of existing private residential buildings and further facilitate EV owners to install EV chargers of their choice and charge their EVs at home in the future in a simple and easy manner;
  • Prepare to conduct a trial of retrofitting of Euro V diesel double-deck franchised buses with enhanced selective catalytic reduction (SCR) systems to reduce the emission of nitrogen oxides;
  • Plan to launch a pilot scheme for electric public light buses (e-PLBs) by 2023 for evaluating the performance of e-PLBs and their charging facilities, and devise a concrete and feasible roadmap for the electrification of PLBs; and
  • Take forward measures set forth in the Hong Kong Roadmap on Popularisation of Electric Vehicles and move towards the target of zero vehicular emissions early.

 

Previous Initiatives

Year

 Key Policy and Control Measures on Vehicular Emissions

2017-2019

  • Tightened the emission requirements of the Franchised Bus Low Emission Zones (FBLEZs) at Central, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok to Euro V emission standards or above from 31 December 2019; and
  • Tightened the vehicle emission standards for first registered motor vehicles (except for diesel private cars, buses with a design weight of not more than 9 tonnes, light buses with a design weight of more than 3.5 tonnes, motorcycles and tricycles) to Euro VI in phases from July 2017. For first registered diesel private cars, the standards were tightened to California LEV III from October 2017.

2014-2016

  • Set up FBLEZs at 3 busy road sections in Central, Causeway Bay and Mong Kok, allowing only buses meeting Euro IV or higher emission standards to run through from 31 December 2015;
  • Fully subsidised the franchised bus companies (FBC) to purchase 6 double-deck hybrid buses and 36 single-deck electric buses for trial in 2014 and 2015 respectively;
  • Deployed roadside remote sensing equipment to identify vehicles with excessive emission which strengthened the vehicle emission regime for petrol and LPG vehicle from September 2014 (detailed in in Strengthened Emissions Control for Petrol and LPG Vehicles);
  • Launched an incentive-cum-regulatory scheme in March 2014 to phase out pre-Euro IV DCVs. Service life of DCVs first registered on or after 1 February 2014 is also limited to 15 years (detailed in Phasing out Pre-Euro IV Diesel Commercial Vehicles); and
  • Funded the FBCs to retrofit 1 030 Euro II and III franchised buses with SCR devices and diesel particulate filters (DPF) from 2014 to 2017.

2011-2013

  • Subsidised vehicle owners to replace the catalytic converters and oxygen sensors of LPG / petrol taxis and light buses from August 2013 to March 2014;
  • Completed the incentive scheme for replacing Euro II DCVs in June 2013, involving 7 400 DCVs ;
  • Tightened vehicle emission standards for first registered motor vehicles (except for motorcycles and tricycles) to Euro V in phases starting from June 2012;
  • Set up the Pilot Green Transport Fund in 2011 to subsidise the testing of green innovative transport technologies applicable to the transport sector and charitable / non-profit organisations; and
  • Enacted the Motor Vehicle Idling (Fixed Penalty) Ordinance in 2011 (detailed in The Statutory Ban against Idling of Motor Vehicle Engines)

2007-2010

  • Tightened the specifications of motor vehicle diesel and unleaded petrol to Euro V standards from July 2010;
  • Completed the incentive scheme for replacing pre-Euro and Euro I DCVs in March 2010, involving about 17 000 DCVs;
  • Completed retrofitting Euro II and III buses with DPFs by FBCs in 2010; and
  • Launched the Tax Incentives for Environment-friendly Commercial Vehicles and the Tax Incentives for Environment-friendly Petrol Private Cars in April 2008 and April 2007 respectively to offer First Registration Tax (FRT) reduction to buyers of first registered environment-friendly commercial vehicle (on-going) and environment-friendly petrol private cars (ended on 31 March 2015).

 

 

Tightening Fuel and Vehicle Emission Standards

Vehicle emission standards
 

Emission standards for first-registered vehicles have been tightened continuously since 1995. Currently the vehicle emission standards for motor vehicle first registration (except for diesel private cars, motor cycles and motor tricycles) were tightened to Euro VI (see table below). Compared with their Euro V counterparts, Euro VI heavy duty diesel vehicles emit about 80 per cent less nitrogen oxides (NOx) and 50 per cent less respirable suspended particulates (RSP or PM10), while Euro 6 light duty diesel vehicles emit about 55 per cent less NOx.

Prevailing vehicle emission standards (by category) and their implementation dates

Vehicle Category

Emission Standard

Implementation Date for First Registered Vehicle

Motor Cycle

Euro 4

1 October 2020

Motor Tricycle

Euro 3

1 January 2007

Private Car (diesel)

California LEV III

1 October 2017

Bus (design weight of more than 9 tonnes) and Goods Vehicle (design weight of more than 3.5 tonnes)

Euro VI On Board Diagnostics (OBD) Phase C

1 April 2019

Bus (design weight of not more than 9 tonnes) and Light Bus (design weight of more than 3.5 tonnes)

1 March 2021

Private Car (petrol) and Taxi

Euro 6c OBD Euro 6-2

1 September 2019

Goods Vehicle and Light Bus (both design weight of not more than 3.5 tonnes)

1 September 2020

 

Vehicle fuel standards

Petrol- We have tightened the sulphur content in unleaded petrol from 0.015% to 0.005% since January 2005 in tandem with the European Union.

 

Ultra low sulphur diesel (ULSD)- ULSD has a sulphur content of 0.005%, which is the Euro IV requirement for motor vehicle diesel. It became the only motor diesel fuel available at petrol filling stations in Hong Kong, after the Government introduced a concessionary duty on ULSD in July 2000. Since April 2002, ULSD has been the statutory minimum requirement for motor vehicle diesel, 3 years ahead of the European Union. Hong Kong is also the first place in Asia to introduce ULSD on a full scale for its vehicle fleet.

 

Euro V diesel- On 1 December 2007, the Government offered a concessionary duty rate of $0.56 per litre for Euro V diesel, which has a sulphur content of 0.001%. Since then, all petrol filling stations in Hong Kong are exclusively offering this fuel. Starting from 14 July 2008, the duty rate for Euro V diesel has been waived.

 

Biodiesel- The Air Pollution Control (Motor Vehicle Fuel) (Amendment) Regulation 2009 came into force on 1 July 2010. The Amendment Regulation provides statutory control on the specifications of motor vehicle biodiesel and the labelling requirement on selling of motor vehicle biodiesel with biodiesel content over 5%.

 

Euro V Motor Vehicle Fuels- As from 1 July 2010, we have tightened the statutory motor vehicle diesel and unleaded petrol specifications to Euro V level. The major difference between Euro IV and Euro V motor vehicle fuels (both diesel and petrol) is the tightening of the cap on sulphur content from 0.005% to 0.001%.

 

 

Cleaner Alternatives to Diesel Vehicles

LPG Taxis and Light Buses

Taxis- To encourage a quick switch of the 18 000 diesel taxis to environmentally-cleaner vehicles, the government provided a one-off grant of $40,000 for each replacement of diesel taxis with one that operates on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in a subsidy programme starting in August 2000. The programme was completed at the end of 2003. Almost all (about 99%) taxis are now fuelled by LPG.

Photo of LPG taxi Logo of LPG vehicle

 

Light Buses- We started a programme in August 2002 to offer incentives to encourage the early replacement of the 6 000 diesel light buses with LPG or electric ones. For diesel public light buses, we offered a one-off grant of $60,000 or $80,000 for each diesel public light bus that was replaced with an LPG or electric one respectively; for diesel private light buses, each replacement LPG vehicle was exempted from the first registration tax. The programme was completed at the end of 2005. Right now, about 80% of the registered public light buses run on LPG.

Photo of LPG Light Bus

LPG Light Bus

Photo of Electric Light Bus

Electric Light Bus

 

Controlling Emissions from the Remaining Diesel Vehicles

Light diesel vehicles- A programme to help owners of pre-Euro light diesel vehicles to retrofit their vehicles with particulate traps or catalytic converters was completed in 2001. More than 80% of the fleet, or 24 000 light diesel vehicles, were fitted with these devices under the retrofit programme. A particulate trap/catalytic converter can cut particulates emission from a pre-Euro light diesel vehicle by about 30%. From December 2003, a regulation requiring all pre-Euro diesel light vehicles up to 4 tonnes to be installed with suitable particulate reduction devices has been implemented.

Photo of particulate reduction device

Particulate reduction device

Photo of particulate trap

Particulate trap

 

Medium and heavy diesel vehicles- A programme to help owners of pre-Euro heavy diesel, other than those heavy duty vehicles that require the operation of on-board equipment during idling (i.e. long idling vehicles) which were retrofitted separately in another programme, to retrofit their vehicles with catalytic converters was completed in 2004. More than 96% of the fleet, or 34 000 heavy diesel vehicles, were fitted with catalytic converters under the retrofit programme. A catalytic converter can cut particulates emission from a pre-Euro heavy diesel vehicle by about 25% to 35%. From April 2006, a regulation requiring all these pre-Euro heavy diesel vehicles to be installed with suitable particulate reduction devices has been implemented.

Photo of heavy diesel vehicle

A similar programme to help owners of long idling pre-Euro heavy diesel vehicles (i.e. concrete mixer, gully emptier, lorry crane and pressure tanker) to retrofit their vehicles with catalytic converters was completed in 2005. About 95% of the fleet, or 2 500 long idling pre-Euro heavy diesel vehicles, were fitted with catalytic converters under the retrofit programme. From April 2007, a regulation requiring all these long idling pre-Euro heavy diesel vehicles to be installed with suitable particulate reduction devices has been implemented.

Buses- In 2010, the FBCs completed retrofitting their Euro II and III buses with diesel particulate filters (DPF), where technically feasible. A DPF can reduce particulate emissions from diesel vehicles by over 80%. Currently all pre-Euro and Euro I franchised buses have already been phased out.  In order to improve roadside air quality, we have fully subsidized the FBCs to retrofit 1 030 eligible Euro II and III franchised buses with SCRs to upgrade their emissions performance to Euro IV or above level. The retrofit programme was completed in 2017.

 

 

Strengthening Emission Inspection and Enforcement

Controlling smoky vehicles

 Photo of dynamometer smoke test

The Smoky Vehicle Control Programme (SVCP) has been in operation since 1988. This programme mainly targets diesel vehicles that emit excessive smoke due to poor maintenance. Smoky vehicle spotters who are trained and accredited by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) will report diesel vehicles that emit excessive smoke on the road to EPD. EPD will issue Emission Testing Notices (ETNs) to the owners of the spotted vehicles, requiring them to fix the smoke problem and pass a chassis dynamometer smoke test within 12 working days. Vehicles failing the smoke test would have their licences cancelled by the Transport Department.

 Photo of joint operation with the Police

 

Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) in collaboration with EPD have, from time to time, supported the programme by mounting roadside smoke-testing operations. Police officers will stop vehicles having excessive smoke emissions on road for a smoke test using a portable smokemeter. Fixed penalty ticket will be issued to the owners of vehicles failing the smoke test. The fixed penalty for smoky vehicle was raised from $450 to $1,000 on 1 December 2000. EPD will separately issue an ETN to the owner requiring them to fix the smoke problem and pass the smoke test at a DVETC within 12 working days.

A majority of vehicles emitting excessive smoke are aged and poorly maintained DCVs. To improve roadside air quality and better protect public health, EPD launched an incentive-cum-regulatory scheme in March 2014 to phase out progressively some 82 000 pre-Euro IV DCVs. The number of smoky vehicles on the road has been reduced in turn, resulting in a significant drop in the number of smoky vehicle reports made by the accredited spotters.

 

Strengthened control of emissions from LPG and petrol vehicles

From 1 September 2014 onwards, a strengthened vehicle emission regime for petrol and LPG vehicles has been implemented that includes limits for carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and NOx to improve roadside air quality. Roadside remote sensing equipment are deployed to identify vehicles with excessive emission which will be required to pass a chassis dynamometer emission test after repair. Failure to comply with the requirement will lead to cancellation of the licence of the vehicle by the Commissioner for Transport.

 

 

Promoting Better Vehicle Maintenance and Eco-driving

Training and seminars on vehicle maintenance

Since August 1999, the EPD, in collaboration with the Vocational Training Council and other organisations had been offering training sessions for vehicle mechanics on proper engine repair and maintenance to reduce emissions from vehicles. At present, vehicle maintenance courses are still being offered by the Vocational Training Council for vehicle mechanics.

Since September 2014, the EPD has been deploying roadside remote sensing equipment to measure the exhaust emissions from LPG and petrol vehicles. Excessively emitting vehicles identified have to pass a chassis dynamometer based emission test to confirm that they meet the emission limits. To help the vehicle mechanics to get familiar with the new emission test, technical seminars and demonstration tests have been organised to explain the technical details. The EPD has also commissioned the Vocational Training Council to deliver free short courses to the trade teaching the technique of maintaining the LPG and petrol vehicles to pass the chassis dynamometer based emission test.

 

Seminars on eco-driving

The EPD, in collaboration with the Vocational Training Council, Hong Kong Productivity Council and some relevant trade associations/institutions, conducted eco-driving seminars for the public. These seminars aim at promoting proper vehicle maintenance and eco-driving practices for fleet operators, commercial vehicle drivers and vehicle owners and drivers with a view to reducing vehicular emissions and switching off idling engines; and hence improving the roadside air quality. We will continue to organise such eco-driving seminars.

 

 

Promoting Electric Vehicle Adoption

As electric vehicles (EV) have no tailpipe emissions and low carbon emission, the Government has been actively promoting EV adoption and has formulated a series of policies and measures. In March 2021, the Government announced the first Hong Kong Roadmap on Popularisation of Electric Vehicles, which will guide Hong Kong’s future direction to the target of zero vehicular emissions early. For details, please see Promotion of Electric Vehicles in Hong Kong.

 

 

Building a Local Vehicle Emission Database and Introducing In-use Compliance Program

We also evaluate the performance of the latest vehicle technologies over time, especially the performance of after-treatment devices and build up a local in-use vehicle emission database by portable emission measurement systems (PEMS) that can account for the emission design standards, operating conditions and engine conditions of local vehicles. With the database, we shall be able to estimate with greater precision motor vehicle emissions and better understand how different emission control measures will affect local emissions. Conducting vehicle emission measurements by PEMS is considered worldwide to be the most effective. PEMS are considered an effective means of in-use compliance checking. So far, we have conducted vehicle emission measurements for about 450 in-use vehicles of various vehicle classes, like petrol cars, taxis, light and heavy goods vehicles, public and private light buses, franchised and non-franchised buses.

Training/practice and examinations for the operation of PEMS are being conducted by EPD at least twice a year. Those who have passed the examination will be provided with a certificate for the operation of PEMS showed in the link below:

Certificate for the Operation of PEMS

The PEMS installation on a coach for real-world vehicle emission measurements

The PEMS equipment installed inside a coach for real-world vehicle emission measurements

 

 

 

Roadside Air Quality Trends

The above measures have brought a significant improvement of roadside air quality. Compared with 1999, the concentrations of major air pollutants recorded at the roadside air quality monitoring stations have been on a declining trend in 2020: the annual average concentrations of respirable suspended particulates (RSP), fine suspended particulates (FSP), NO2, and sulphur dioxide (SO2) have dropped by 66%, 65%, 29% and 81% respectively, and the number of smoky vehicles spotted has also been reduced by nearly 90%. Although NO2 concentration at the roadside has dropped by about 40% from its peak in 2011, it is still at a high level, and the annual average concentration exceeds the respective annual Air Quality Objective. This remains a key challenge we need to tackle.

To further improve roadside air quality and tackle the NO2 problem, we have embarked on additional vehicle emission control measures including the phasing out Euro IV DCVsstrengthening the emission control of petrol and LPG vehicles through the deployment of roadside remote sensing equipment and chassis dynamometers for emission testing. The Government is also actively promoting electric vehicle adoption in Hong Kong.