Gas scooters to bow out in Shanghai in 2016

Gas-powered scooters will be banned from 2016, Shanghai government said yesterday.

Anyone in possession of such a bike should take it to a recycling center — which open from Monday — where they will receive a 200 yuan (US$32) refund and a discount voucher for an electric moped, it said.

Local authorities stopped registering the scooters, which have a maximum lifespan of just eight years, several years ago, so all of the ones on the city's streets are now out of date.

The government hopes to complete the scrapping process by the end of next year and anyone riding such a bike in 2016 will be fined.

Gas stations have also been warned that they will be fined for servicing or modifying gas-powered scooters.