History of electric vehicle industry in China
China's first subway was constructed in Beijing in January 1970, nearly one hundred years after its initial development in London. By 1984, 66 major subway systems existed worldwide. Urban rail transit helped ease the immense pressure caused by urban traffic congestion, while allowing commuters to travel at great speed and convenience. Tianjin was the second city to have an urban rapid transit system and Shanghai was the third, the latter opening its Metro in 1995 that incorporated both subway and light railway lines. Electric bike and motorcycle development in the 1990s The two principal types of two-wheeled vehicles in China: two-wheel bicycles propelled by human pedaling supplemented by electrical power from a storage battery (bicycle-style), and low-speed scooters propelled almost solely by electricity (scooter-style). The technology of both types is similar. China's two-wheeled electric vehicle industry started under the planned economy of the Maoist 1960s. However, early efforts to develop and commercialize these electric vehicles failed. A group of entrepreneurs gathered during the 1980s to revive the fledgling industry but their ambitions were thwarted by poor technology and limited government support. By the 1990s, China witnessed the world's most spectacular growth in two-wheeled electric vehicles and annual sales of bicycles