The municipal government invested in a high-tech upgrade to improve the bidding process, including identity authentication and telephone number registrations, to prevent nuisance bidders from clogging the network.

Shanghai is the only city on the mainland to issue plates by auction - a dual initiative to control vehicle numbers and pollution.

The average winning price peaked in December last year at a whopping 56,042 yuan.

Wu Yi, deputy director of the Shanghai Transport Management Bureau, said during a regular municipal press conference this month that the car-plate auction system will eventually be scrapped as the city's public transport system improves. Wu did not set a definite time for the phase-out.

(Shanghai Daily March 31, 2008)