Kunming newspaper Dushi Shibao is reporting that beginning on the 27th of this month, Kunming will be the first city in China to have monthly 'No-car days'. After this month, private cars will be banned from entering the city's ring road between the hours of 9:00 am and 7:00 pm on the fourth Saturday of each month.

On September 22 Kunming was one of more than 100 Chinese cities to ban private cars downtown during the day. For twelve hours, downtown Kunming's streets were primarily occupied by buses, taxis, electric scooters and bicycles. The city's effort was one of the most successful in the country, while Beijing and Shanghai's no-car days received lukewarm reviews.

According to municipal government statistics, September's no-car day had a significant effect on air quality. Carbon monoxide levels dropped 32.9 percent, nitrogen dioxide levels dropped 45.1 percent, ozone was down 39.5 percent, carbon dioxide was down 15.4 percent and airborne particulate matter was reduced by more than one-fifth.

The private car ban will still apply to the area within but not including Huancheng Bei Lu, Huancheng Dong Lu, Huancheng Nan Lu, Xichang Lu and Yieryi Da Jie. In addition to being two hours shorter than September's no-car day, there is one other slight alteration - vehicles with at least 17 seats that are at least half-filled will also be able to enter the no-car area.

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