Beijing reported the registration of 261,000 new cars in the first seven months, or about 1,240 daily, up 9 percent from the same period last year.

Private cars took about 97 percent of the new cars registered in this period, according to the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau.

New cars with engine displacement of 1.6 liters or below hit nearly 200,000 in this period. It could be attributed to the government's policies to encourage the public to buy low-emission cars for environmental protection.

Beijing had 5.47 million drivers by Aug. 6. Among them, 11.3 percent were aged below 25, according to the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau.

(Xinhua News Agency August 16, 2009)