At the end of last year, departments and institutions of the Beijing municipal government owned a total of 62,026 vehicles, according to a statement by the city's financial authorities.

The use of government cars by officials is undergoing scrutiny as authorities seek to cut down on expenditure. [File Photo/Xinhua]

Of these, 20,288 belonged to departments directly controlled by the municipal government, the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Public Finance said on March 31, 2011.

Earlier this month, at the Fourth Session of the 11th National People's Congress (NPC), Beijing deputy mayor Ji Lin promised that the city government would disclose the number of vehicles in official use in the capital.

Ye Xiaojing, a lawyer who originally requested the information, said the announcement was welcome but pointed out that the government figures provided no breakdown by vehicle type.

During the annual NPC session, the central government demanded that the service life of official cars used by ministers and governors be extended by three years, to reduce the cost of purchasing new vehicles. The new rule applies to all Party and government departments nationwide. Under the old rules, cars used by ministerial-level officials could be replaced as often as every five years.