Trade your car for a bike, cash
2008-06-05 14:02
Ottawa - Canada launched an incentive programme on Wednesday to rid its roads of old gas-guzzling cars and trucks, urging citizens to trade them in for free bicycles, bus passes, or $300 cash.
The National Vehicle Scrappage Programme will offer these incentives to people who retire their 1995 or older model vehicles, and hopefully turn to more environmentally-friendly transportation, the government said.
"We know Canadians want to do their part to help clean up the air we breathe," Environment Minister John Baird said.
"That's why we are launching a national programme to get Canadians' smog-causing gas-guzzlers off the road."
Of the 18 million cars and trucks on Canada's roads, about five million were manufactured before 1996, when tougher emissions standards were introduced.
These pre-1996 models produce about 19 times more air pollutants than newer cars and trucks, said Baird.
And although they make up less than one-third of vehicles on the road, older cars generate as much as two-thirds of the smog-forming pollutants caused by personal vehicle use, he said.
The government has committed $92m over four years to implement the programme, which is to be run by a national not-for-profit organisation.
A rebate on the purchase of a new car or a membership in a car-sharing programme will also be offered as incentives.