Four departments: Support the renewal of new energy buses and power batteries in conjunction with the implementation of large-scale equipment renewal policies

The Zhitong Finance App learned that on September 29, the Ministry of Transport, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security issued guidance on promoting the deepening reform of urban public transport enterprises. Among them, it was mentioned that the government subsidy and compensation system should be strictly implemented. Implement the relevant provisions of the “Urban Public Transportation Regulations”, implement municipal and county financial expenditure responsibilities, and arrange the funds required for urban public transportation development according to the actual and financial affordability of urban public transportation and include them in the local budget. When the revenue of public transport companies does not meet the expected annual targets, the city people's government should provide policy support in accordance with regulations and take measures to ensure the normal operation of bus routes. Local governments shall take into account the reduction in revenue from implementing preferential government ride-hailing policies or lower fares, as well as policy losses due to undertaking tasks ordered by the government, when approving operating subsidies. Treat operators with different forms of ownership equally. Support the renewal of new energy buses and power batteries in conjunction with the implementation of large-scale equipment renewal policies.

The original text is as follows:

Ministry of Transport, National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security Guiding Opinions on Promoting Urban Public Transport Enterprises to Deepen Reform

The people's governments of each province, autonomous region, and municipality directly under the Central Government, plan to list separate municipal people's governments:

Urban public transportation is an important public welfare undertaking and livelihood project. In order to implement the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee and the State Council, push public transport enterprises to deepen reforms, improve urban public transportation security capabilities and service levels, and better meet people's basic travel needs, the following opinions are put forward with the approval of the State Council.

I. General Requirements

Guided by Xi Jinping's ideology of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress and the 20th Plenary Session of the CPC, implement the Central City Work Conference arrangements, adhere to the public welfare attributes of urban public transportation, adhere to the public welfare attributes of urban public transportation, consolidate the main responsibilities of the urban people's government, deepen the reform of public transport enterprises, strengthen policy support, promote the high-quality development of the urban public transport industry, and better guarantee the basic travel needs of the masses. It provides strong support for speeding up the construction of modern people's cities.

II. Improving the management efficiency of public transport enterprises

(1) Classification guides enterprises to deepen reforms. Guide state-owned public transport enterprises to focus on their main business, improve decision-making efficiency and management level, and improve employee incentive mechanisms. Guide private public transport enterprises to improve quality and efficiency and standardize operations. Support large public transport companies to play an exemplary role in corporate governance, digital intelligence empowerment, people's livelihood services, party building leadership, etc., and explore new ways to deepen reforms. Guide small and medium-sized public transport companies to strengthen risk awareness and guarantee basic operations.

(2) Optimizing job settings and staffing. Guide bus companies to reasonably determine driver-to-vehicle ratios according to actual operating requirements, and implement dynamic allocation across routes. Promote the flattening of the organizational structure of bus enterprises and streamline management positions. Guide enterprise managers to sink down and enrich frontline operations. Support the adoption of shared employment and other methods in accordance with the law to promote the efficient allocation of human resources in public transport companies.

(3) Strict financial management. Guide bus companies to strengthen overall budget management. Standardize cost accounting for bus operations, vehicle purchases, maintenance, energy consumption, etc., clarify the reasonable expenses of enterprises, and strictly control unproductive expenses. Implement open procurement and sunshine procurement to reduce operating costs. Strict use of funds such as ticket revenue and government subsidies. Improve the company's internal financial risk prevention and control system.

(4) Improve and perfect the performance appraisal system. Establish and implement an operating cost accounting system for bus companies, and explore the classification and accounting of basic travel services and market-based services of bus companies. For bus routes that guarantee basic travel, the focus is on assessing how they implement requirements such as safe operation, cost savings and efficiency, and fulfilment of social responsibility.

(5) Strengthen asset management and resource revitalization. Guide bus companies to establish and improve asset life cycle management systems. Strengthen special management and standardized disposal of key materials such as maintenance parts, tires, fuel, and power batteries. Bus companies are encouraged to use some idle facilities at bus stops to carry out social commercial services such as charging, parking, logistics and distribution, and housing rental.

(6) Standardize production safety management. Strictly implement laws and regulations such as the “Work Safety Law of the People's Republic of China” and the “Urban Public Transportation Regulations” to ensure that public transport companies are fully funded and earmarked for production safety. Drivers and other personnel in key positions are regularly trained and filed on production safety skills, timely adaptive training is carried out for drivers who change models and routes, strengthen drivers' health tests before leaving work and dynamic monitoring of driving behavior and physical condition during work, and effectively maintain the safety of urban bus operations.

III. Safeguarding the Legitimate Rights and Interests of Employees

(7) Ensure that employees' wages are paid in full and on time. Fully establish special wage accounts for bus company employees. Strengthen dynamic monitoring of wage payments and social security payments. Guide enterprises to improve the remuneration distribution system, establish a mechanism for dynamic adjustment of employees' wages and income, make good connections with the average wage level of local workers, and increase wage distribution in favor of front-line jobs such as drivers.

(8) Strengthen the ideological education and care of employees. Organize regular occupational health examinations and psychological counseling for drivers, keep abreast of their physical condition and mental dynamics in a timely manner, and strongly guarantee their physical and mental health. Improve drivers' rest service facilities at the first and last bus stops to meet drivers' basic needs such as meals and rest.

IV. Optimizing urban bus operation services

(9) Develop urban public transportation according to local conditions. Adapting to new urbanization and changing trends in public travel structures, one city, one policy determines the development model of urban public transportation. Large, megacities and large cities with rail transit networks are speeding up the construction of public transportation systems with urban rail transit as the backbone and based on urban public transportation, giving full play to the main role of public transportation in urban motorized travel. Large cities without rail transit networks actively build urban bus networks with fast branch micro-hierarchical layout and functional connections, and play an important role in morning and evening peak commuting. Other large cities and small to medium cities that have not built and operated rail transit give full play to the basic travel guarantee role of urban public transportation for the elderly and low-income groups. Encourage the construction of commuter bus corridors in the metropolitan area and promote the integrated development of urban and rural public transportation.

(10) Safeguarding the basic travel needs of the masses. In line with changes in mass travel methods and comprehensive transportation development, etc., the focus is on guaranteeing basic urban public transportation services. According to passenger flow demand and financial affordability, revise basic urban bus travel service standards according to local conditions, and refine service requirements such as route range, station coverage, first and last bus times, and departure frequency. Scientifically determine the size of urban buses, rationally allocate urban bus models, and gradually reduce the proportion of oversized vehicles in conventional buses. Moderately encrypt the number of flights during peak morning and evening commute hours to increase the proportion of city bus trips. Establish a mechanism for dynamic evaluation and optimization of urban bus networks. Handle the relationship between the government and the market, and support bus companies to carry out customized travel services as needed on the premise of safeguarding basic public travel.

(11) Reasonably determine the price of the ticket system and the scope of concessions. Implement a mechanism for dynamic adjustment of city bus fares, carry out regular evaluations, and make dynamic adjustments in a smooth and orderly manner as needed. City buses are subject to government pricing or government guidance prices, and market price adjustments can be applied to customized buses. Establish a multi-level and differentiated fare system, improve diversified ticket systems such as annual passes, monthly passes, and weekly passes, and implement mileage segmented pricing for long-distance routes. Strictly implement preferential ride-hailing policies based on laws, administrative regulations and relevant national regulations.

(12) Accelerate the digital upgrading of the industry. Accelerate the application of new technologies such as artificial intelligence in bus passenger flow prediction, line network optimization, intelligent scheduling, and operation safety, improve the scientific effectiveness of bus schedule settings and capacity arrangements, and accurately match travel needs. Support enterprises that are in a position to do so to implement centralized and unified scheduling. Support the integrated operation of bus and rail transit enterprises according to routes and regions, promote data resource sharing, and strengthen coordination and overall scheduling.

5. Strengthen policy support

(13) Strictly implement the government subsidy compensation system. Implement the relevant provisions of the “Urban Public Transportation Regulations”, implement municipal and county financial expenditure responsibilities, and arrange the funds required for urban public transportation development according to the actual and financial affordability of urban public transportation and include them in the local budget. When the revenue of public transport companies does not meet the expected annual targets, the city people's government should provide policy support in accordance with regulations and take measures to ensure the normal operation of bus routes. Local governments shall take into account the reduction in revenue from implementing preferential government ride-hailing policies or lower fares, as well as policy losses due to undertaking tasks ordered by the government, when approving operating subsidies. Treat operators with different forms of ownership equally. Support the renewal of new energy buses and power batteries in conjunction with the implementation of large-scale equipment renewal policies.

(14) Strengthen the construction management of bus-only lanes and the guarantee of station facilities. Coordinate priority bus traffic and social vehicle traffic requirements, rationally set up dedicated bus lanes, and give priority to ensuring convenient bus traffic on heavily congested road sections and sections with concentrated passenger traffic. The scientific evaluation sets the dedicated time period for bus lanes and adjusts them dynamically. Strengthen supervision of the use of bus-only lanes. Combining the overall allocation of incremental and existing land use, the layout of urban bus stops is optimized, station land is included in the “one map” of the territorial spatial plan, and land use requirements are reasonably guaranteed in the detailed territorial spatial planning, involving priority land use indicators for new construction land. Encourage the safe and efficient use of vacated land in urban areas, space under viaducts on the periphery of the city, underground space, etc. to build bus stops, and revitalize the use of inefficient bus stop land according to law and regulations. Encourage all regions to provide policy support for new energy city bus charging. Encourage schools, hospitals, communities, etc. that are in a position to do so to facilitate bus stops.

6. Strengthening organizational guarantees

The city people's government should effectively carry out its main responsibilities, strengthen organizational leadership for deepening the reform of public transport enterprises, guide each enterprise in formulating reform plans, review the deepening reform plans of public transport enterprises in the city, and coordinate research and coordination to resolve major issues in the deepening reform of public transport enterprises. People's governments at the provincial level should strengthen policy support, supervision and guidance. The Ministry of Transport should work with relevant parties to strengthen policy guidance and supervision and implementation, and promptly request reports on important matters in accordance with procedures.

Ministry of Transport National Development and Reform Commission

Ministry of Finance Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security

September 23, 2026

This article was edited by the Ministry of Transport, Zhitong Finance Editor: Chen Wenfang.