The “No-Car Day” restriction is likely to be reapplied in Beijing this year, says Liu Xiaoming, director of the Beijing municipal communications commission.

"Authorities are finalizing assessments of the current ban among some members of the public and policy advisers. We will soon make the announcement," he said.

The ban has been in place since last April, Xinhua reports. It prohibits Beijing car-owners from driving on one day per week, based on the last digit of their license plate. This way, 800,000 cars are being kept off the roads, or around one-fifth of the city's total.

Authorities will also make other efforts to keep traffic flow smooth, for example, by modifying regular office hours, raising car parking fees and extending bus and shuttle services.

Mao Baohua, a government adviser on transportation policies, says that these actions are the government's only option, since the amount of cars in Beijing has already gotten out of hand.

Last year, congestion went down 7.4 percent from 2008 as a result of the traffic restrictions.