Every five weeks, 9,500 brand new electric buses take to the roads in China

China is now adding an electric bus fleet the same size as London’s entire working fleet every five weeks, according to a report by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. If cities in the country continue to add 9,500 of the zero-emission vehicles at the same frequency, half of the world’s buses will be battery powered by 2025.

Buses consume 30 times more fuel than average sized cars, so their impact on energy use is significant.

China has the biggest urban population in the world and its cities face huge challenges with air pollution. It’s also a high-profile political issue, according to the report, so authorities are keen to be seen to be acting on the problem. More broadly, China wants to reduce its dependency on oil for economic reasons.

Featured image: Mario Sessions