Visitors check out a new energy vehicle during the 2019 Hangzhou international New Energy Vehicle Exhibition, Zhejiang province on Aug 31. [Photo/VCG]

Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, has ramped up efforts to promote new energy vehicles (NEVs), with financial subsidies worth over 800 million yuan ($1.11 billion) having been issued over the past three years, said an official from the Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Transportation.

To date, Hangzhou has 150,000 NEVs, including 87,700 in the public transportation sector. Last year, the city added more than 50,000 new energy private cars.

Hangzhou will further increase subsidies and promote NEVs in major sectors without limitations on purchasing and traffic restrictions, said the official.

It is expected that all public transportation vehicles in the Hangzhou urban area will be upgraded to NEVs by 2020, with taxis expected to be upgraded by the end of 2021.