Jane Chen /Shanghai Daily news

Training fees at Shanghai driving schools remain high, at above 5,000 yuan (US$605) this summer, a traditionally slack season for business due to the scorching sunlight, today's Shanghai Morning Post reported.
A training program for Volkswagen Santanas is 5,100 yuan for week-day classes and 5,300 yuan for weekend classes at Tongyong driving school, and 5,200 yuan/5,600 yuan at Jingjiang school. Rongchen charges 5,300 yuan; and at Bashi it is 5,200 yuan regardless of when the class is held.
Industry insiders have described the consistently high fees as a result of the schools' rising costs from the extended training times now required by the city's new driver training regulations.
The new regulations, unveiled in April, require driving schools to give classes on traffic rules, which previously were studied by trainees on their own. That has extended the training program from the previous 10 weeks to about 12, they noted.
Moreover, the new driver training regulations require schools to buy additional training facilities because new testing items are added to the exam.
The additional facilities, costing about 1 million yuan, have pressured the schools into raising training fees, insiders pointed out.
Despite these costs, training fees should remain stable this year, according the city's driving training industry association.
As reported at the association's meeting yesterday, 220,000 people are expected to take driver training this year, slightly fewer than last year's 250,000.
College students have grown among trainees at driving schools this summer, according to industry sources.
About a quarter of all applicants for this summer's program are college students, who only accounted for 10 percent five years ago, an official with Qiangsheng driving school said.