Shenzhen recently made the restriction of cutting its annual vehicle quota by 100,000 units.
On Dec. 29, 2014, Shenzhen declared limitations on the purchase of vehicles which resulted in Shenzhen residents buying cars hours before the restrictions worked in full effect.
The efforts began last 2014 where vehicular emissions were stated as the major source of pollutants.
Following Shenzhen's move, the southern metropolis in Guangdong joined other major Chinese cities that have taken extreme measures the previous year to cut vehicle emissions and a nationwide movement concerning the reduction of air pollution.
By the end of November, there have been 6.11 million vehicles all across China taken off the roads that did not meet the green emission standards, which exceeded the goal's expected number, according to the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
Plans to promote the use of vehicles that use new energy and to pull out units with high emissions were released in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei zone this 2015 and an expansion of the plan would be nationwide by 2017, according to the country's top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission.
Beginning the previous decade, big Chinese cities like Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou have pushed through standardized policies to harness the fast growth in the number of vehicles on their roads.
Beijing is considering constructing plans that would implement the odd-even license plate traffic restrictions--which was applied during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)--as a lasting restriction.
Cooperation of regions among Beijing and surrounding provinces and areas was the main reason why the environmental objectives were met.
Assessing different measures to control the air pollution should be a part of the improved fashion of the economic development, and the Chinese government should elevate the economy with environmental protection in mind, told the Minister of Environmental Protection, Zhou Shengxian.
Environmentalists and environmental observers stated that the strict controls of the Chinese government on the pollution by the industrial sector and other emitters have recorded impressive accomplishments with its green drive, but, they added, there is still a long way to go before pollution reduction targets can be fulfilled.