Navigating through China’s bustling traffic
17/11/2025
Schlegel und Partner share observations from a recent trip to China.
As China accelerates towards electrification, its streets tell two stories. While many urban commuters are swapping four wheels for nimble electric motorcycles to beat the gridlock, others continue to embrace large luxury cars as symbols of success. Together, they reveal the complex future of mobility in China’s fast-changing cities.
China’s cities are showing a diverse picture of vehicles — from rentable bicycles and tricycles to electric motorcycles, hybrid and combustion-driven passenger cars, and commercial vehicles, most of which are taxis. Despite the presence of well-developed subway systems, the streets are still bustling with traffic. In recent years, the number of electric motorcycles seems to have grown significantly, while the use of rental bicycles has stabilized or even declined. Much of the curbside parking space is now occupied by small electric motorcycles, as city residents seek to avoid the heavily congested streets — not only during rush hours.Nevertheless, large electric vehicles from both domestic and foreign brands remain in high demand and are considered status symbols. Advertising campaigns and luxurious showrooms in major shopping malls and city centers proudly showcase China’s advanced electric vehicle models, such as the Stelato S9 (Huawei), Zeekr (Geely), Xiaomi and NIO. The luxury Zeekr SUV, in particular, is a common sight on Shanghai’s streets.
Huawei has also emerged as a major player in autonomous driving with its ADS 4 system, which is already being tested across China. Huawei aims to commercialize large-scale driverless and logistics vehicles by 2027–2028, in collaboration with GAC (Guangzhou Automobile Group), which also operates joint ventures with Japanese brands like Honda, Mitsubishi, and Toyota.
German brands, such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi - though primarily available as combustion-engine models with blue license plates (indicating combustion engines) still have a strong fanbase among affluent, middle-aged Chinese consumers and are still often spotted on Beijing’s and Shanghai’s streets despite a 40% luxury tax on imported vehicles. Green license plates, by contrast, denote fully electric or hybrid cars, which are also already widespread across China. Currently, around 40% of all passenger cars on China’s streets are New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) — fully electric or hybrid — while for taxis, the number of fully electric vehicles operating in Tier 1 cities, such as Shanghai and Beijing, amounts to more than 85% already. However, the remaining around 60% of the total number of passenger cars in China’s streets still rely on combustion engines. Car owners cite several reasons for hesitating to purchase fully electric vehicles. A key concern is that charging infrastructure remains limited outside major cities. The discontinuation of government subsidies for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) has also reduced consumer incentives.
The growing number of NEVs — whether fully electric or hybrid — and even autonomous driving vehicles, does not help to alleviate traffic congestion in China’s major cities. Images of massive traffic jams, especially during rush hour and public holidays, frequently appear even in international media.Could electric motorcycles be part of the solution? Judging by the sheer number already zipping through China’s Tier 1 cities, the answer seems to be yes — at least it leaves that impression. But to make them a truly sustainable and safe alternative, city governments must step up to further improve road safety for two-wheelers, educating riders, and enforcing stricter traffic rules. Helmet use — still rare, especially among children and other passengers — and the faint humming sound engineered into otherwise silent electric scooters also remain simple but vital steps toward making alternatives to the use of cars safer and thus streets in China’s major cities less congested. Are you interested in further information? Please do not hesitate to contact us: Dorothea Slevogt
Phone number +49 6201 9915 76,
dorothea.slevogt@SchlegelundPartner.de © Schlegel und Partner 2025
China’s cities are showing a diverse picture of vehicles — from rentable bicycles and tricycles to electric motorcycles, hybrid and combustion-driven passenger cars, and commercial vehicles, most of which are taxis. Despite the presence of well-developed subway systems, the streets are still bustling with traffic. In recent years, the number of electric motorcycles seems to have grown significantly, while the use of rental bicycles has stabilized or even declined. Much of the curbside parking space is now occupied by small electric motorcycles, as city residents seek to avoid the heavily congested streets — not only during rush hours.Nevertheless, large electric vehicles from both domestic and foreign brands remain in high demand and are considered status symbols. Advertising campaigns and luxurious showrooms in major shopping malls and city centers proudly showcase China’s advanced electric vehicle models, such as the Stelato S9 (Huawei), Zeekr (Geely), Xiaomi and NIO. The luxury Zeekr SUV, in particular, is a common sight on Shanghai’s streets.
Huawei has also emerged as a major player in autonomous driving with its ADS 4 system, which is already being tested across China. Huawei aims to commercialize large-scale driverless and logistics vehicles by 2027–2028, in collaboration with GAC (Guangzhou Automobile Group), which also operates joint ventures with Japanese brands like Honda, Mitsubishi, and Toyota.
German brands, such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi - though primarily available as combustion-engine models with blue license plates (indicating combustion engines) still have a strong fanbase among affluent, middle-aged Chinese consumers and are still often spotted on Beijing’s and Shanghai’s streets despite a 40% luxury tax on imported vehicles. Green license plates, by contrast, denote fully electric or hybrid cars, which are also already widespread across China. Currently, around 40% of all passenger cars on China’s streets are New Energy Vehicles (NEVs) — fully electric or hybrid — while for taxis, the number of fully electric vehicles operating in Tier 1 cities, such as Shanghai and Beijing, amounts to more than 85% already. However, the remaining around 60% of the total number of passenger cars in China’s streets still rely on combustion engines. Car owners cite several reasons for hesitating to purchase fully electric vehicles. A key concern is that charging infrastructure remains limited outside major cities. The discontinuation of government subsidies for battery electric vehicles (BEVs) has also reduced consumer incentives.
The growing number of NEVs — whether fully electric or hybrid — and even autonomous driving vehicles, does not help to alleviate traffic congestion in China’s major cities. Images of massive traffic jams, especially during rush hour and public holidays, frequently appear even in international media.Could electric motorcycles be part of the solution? Judging by the sheer number already zipping through China’s Tier 1 cities, the answer seems to be yes — at least it leaves that impression. But to make them a truly sustainable and safe alternative, city governments must step up to further improve road safety for two-wheelers, educating riders, and enforcing stricter traffic rules. Helmet use — still rare, especially among children and other passengers — and the faint humming sound engineered into otherwise silent electric scooters also remain simple but vital steps toward making alternatives to the use of cars safer and thus streets in China’s major cities less congested. Are you interested in further information? Please do not hesitate to contact us: Dorothea Slevogt
Phone number +49 6201 9915 76,
dorothea.slevogt@SchlegelundPartner.de © Schlegel und Partner 2025