Shanghai to phase out lower-end diesel trucks by 2022

The municipal government of Shanghai, China's financial capital, is aiming to remove some 120,000 lower-end diesel-powered trucks in operation by 2022 to help cut air pollution, according to a report on the central government's website on Monday.

At the end of 2018, the city had 120,000 so-called "national three" diesel trucks, or 2.9 percent of its total vehicle fleet registered, representing 30 percent of the city's total nitrogen oxides vehicle emissions and 46 percent of all particulates.

Starting on April 1 2020, the Shanghai government will start banning the diesel trucks on certain highways in the city and expand the ban, in stages, to cover outer highways, the report said, citing Shanghai's official newspaper, Liberation Daily.

Subsidies will be granted to truck operators who phase out the vehicles ahead of schedule, ranging between 3,000 yuan to 116,000 yuan per vehicle depending on the ton.

Diesel-fueled coaches will also be subsidized if removed earlier than required, the report said.