Luohu district government organized an activity from April 20 to May 8 to encourage local residents to make public transportation such as subway and bus their first choice when going out as part of the drive to reduce carbon emissions. [sznews.com]

Luohu district government organized an activity from April 20 to May 8 to encourage local residents to make public transportation such as subway and bus their first choice when going out as part of the drive to reduce carbon emissions.

In the activity, the government launched a resident’s green code. This enables them to obtain coupons by scanning the code while taking subway and bus.

During the period of the activity, nearly eight million people used the codes 38 million times in taking the subway and/or bus. The number of people using public transportation increased 9.3% during the activity compared with the previous two weeks, and the number of trips they made through public transportation grew 7.4% compared in the same period.

The district government estimates the activity saved the participants 2.62 million trips by private cars, taxi or hired auto vehicles during the two weeks.

Statistics show that a total of 101,000 residents of Shenzhen obtained 298,000 coupons through the activity, among which 202,000 coupons have been used worth 7.14 million yuan ($1.11 million). This, in turn, boosted consumption by about 43.08 million yuan.

The district government said the activity had played a positive role in raising public awareness of a healthy low-carbon lifestyle, and prompting government, enterprises and residents to coordinate their efforts to build a low-carbon society, and promote development of a low-carbon economy.

The activity integrates the dual purposes of promoting green development and stimulating consumption, two important tasks of the government.