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0Erinome: Hello everyone! Welcome to our daily news chat. I'm Erinome, and with me today is Enceladus. The New Year's Day holiday is coming soon, right? So many cities are trying to attract tourists. Have you heard what Ningbo is doing?
Enceladus: Oh, I haven't! What's special about Ningbo this time?
Erinome: Wow, they're the first city to offer a highway toll subsidy for self-driving tourists! Let me tell you the details. From January 1st to 3rd, 2026, self-driving travelers can get money back for their toll fees.
Enceladus: Really? How much? And who can get it?
Erinome: For people from other provinces, each car gets 150 yuan. For those from other cities in Zhejiang Province but not Ningbo, it's 80 yuan per car. But there are two conditions, you know that?
Enceladus: Um, what conditions? Do I need to do something first?
Erinome: Yes! First, you have to buy tickets for Ningbo's收费A级景区 (shoufei A-ji jingqu, that's "chargeable A-level scenic spots")—they check the ticket verification proof. Second, you drive a small car with 7 seats or less, and the license plate is not浙B (Zhe B, Ningbo's plate). Oh, and the car info must match the toll fee ticket.
Enceladus: Got it. When exactly? And how to apply?
Erinome: The time is from 8 AM on Jan 1st to 8 PM on Jan 3rd. You apply online, and one car can apply once in these three days.
Enceladus: That makes sense for a 3-day holiday. Why does Ningbo focus more on省内 and city-to-city travelers?
Erinome: Good question! It fits their tourist structure. Take this year's first quarter: Ningbo had 29.03 million visitors, and 81.2% were from Zhejiang. Among省内 visitors, 63.1% were from within their own county, 19.3% from other counties, and 17.6% from other cities. So most tourists are nearby. Oh, and earlier this month, Ningbo already released 10 self-driving routes called "Siming Sanqianli" (Four Brightness Three Thousand Miles).
Enceladus: Oh right, self-driving tours are really popular now. I see more families going on road trips with kids.
Erinome: Exactly! Self-driving has become a big engine for tourism. A report says in 2024, China had 4.35 billion self-driving trips—750 million more than 2023. That's a huge number!
Enceladus: Wow, that's a lot! Are other places doing similar things?
Erinome: Some provinces tried before. Like Guangxi, from May 9th to Dec 31st this year, every Friday to Sunday, if you drive from another province into Guangxi, use ETC, and exit at any highway toll station, you don't pay tolls on 24 highway sections.
Enceladus: Oh no, I missed that! What about Yunnan?
Erinome: Yunnan did 50% off tolls! From Oct 10th to end of this year, every Friday to Sunday, if you enter Yunnan from another province via ETC and exit at certain toll stations, small cars (9 seats or less) get half price on highways managed by Yunnan Jiaotou Group.
Enceladus: But wait, are these policies the same as Ningbo's?
Erinome: No, they're different! Guangxi and Yunnan's policies are pushed by provincial交通 (jiaotong, transportation), development, and finance departments. But Ningbo's is a city-level benefit, led by the cultural and tourism department.
Enceladus: Oh, city-level, that's new. By the way, I thought New Year's Day has free highway tolls?
Erinome: No, no! The national policy says free tolls for small cars (7 seats or less) are only for Spring Festival, Qingming Festival, Labor Day, National Day, and their long weekends. New Year's Day is not included.
Enceladus: So Ningbo's subsidy is even more helpful then! Maybe more cities will try this?
Erinome: Maybe! Well, that's the news for today. Hope everyone has a great New Year's holiday.
Enceladus: Yeah! Okay, that's it for today. Let's talk again next time. Bye!
Erinome: Bye!
