About 60 percent of Shanghai car owners still haven't picked up stickers to certify their cars are environmentally friendly, meaning they might not be allowed on elevated roads in downtown Shanghai starting next week.

Many drivers say they have tried to apply for the stickers, but long lines and a busy phone hotline have forced them to give up.

To date, more than 260,000 car owners have applied for and received the stickers, the Shanghai Information Office announced yesterday.

That only accounts for about 40 percent of the four-wheel vehicles registered in the city, all of which must have a sticker on their window by next week or they won't be allowed on the Inner Ring Road or any elevated road within that viaduct from 7 AM to 8 PM every day.

Anyone found driving on those roads without a sticker faces a 200 yuan (US$24) fine and the loss of two points from their driving record after the ban goes into effect next Wednesday.

The ban will expand to cover all streets within the Inner Ring Road on October 1, according to traffic police.

Car owners can apply for the stickers at 72 outlets across the city, where they have been available since January 20.

The stickers were introduced to reduce emissions from older cars, especially those produced before 2001 when the city didn't have the equipment to properly test auto emission. Some car owners will have to have their exhaust systems revamped before they can qualify for a sticker.

As the deadline for getting a sticker approaches, many car owners are complaining they don't have enough time to meet the requirement and lineups at sticker outlets are ridiculously long.

Fu Xianmin, who owns two cars, said he visited a sticker outlet twice this week but failed to get stickers on both occasions due to long lines at the application office on Guangzhong Road W. - one of only two outlets in Zhabei District.

"I could only afford time to go there after 2 PM. Every time, the hundreds of cars lining up there made me feel hopeless since the service windows shut off after 4 PM," he said.

He said the city needs to set up more outlets and extend service hours.

A hotline set up by the Environmental Protection Bureau to give car owners information about how to get a sticker has also been the center of complaints, as many car owners say the number is always busy.

"Drivers were in a hurry to get a sticker, so they all rushed to the application offices over the past few days. If we could apply for the stickers with the help of car sales companies or other agents, it could help reduce the havoc. Authorities need to let us know more about the situation," said Shen Chengwei, a female car owner, who picked up a sticker yesterday.

(Shanghai Daily February 9, 2006)