EU to introduce CO2 truck limits

The European Commission has announced that it will propose the first EU-wide legal CO2 standard for trucks by 2019. In contrast to passenger cars and vans, no binding EU-wide cap on CO2 emissions from trucks is in place currently. 

 

A report by the European Commission said measures to bring in CO2 limits are being expedited. “The Commission will, therefore, speed up analytical work on design options for standards for heavy duty vehicles and will launch a public consultation to prepare the ground for a legislative proposal,” the document says.

 

The document contains a list of proposals to lower the CO2 footprint of transport, including a “legislative proposal to set fuel efficiency standards for heavy duty vehicles” and a revision of emissions standards for cars and vans post-2020.

 

To prepare the ground for the new limits the Commission will propose a law on the certification of CO2 emissions and fuel consumption of new trucks and a law to monitor fuel consumption.

 

Trucks account for about a quarter of CO2 emissions from road transport in Europe, even though they only make up less than 5% of total road traffic. In 2014, reported emissions from heavy-duty vehicles (HDV) were 13% above 1990 levels.

 

This follows calls from 4 countries including Britain who called on the Commission to limit truck CO2 emissions. Britain, Belgium, Slovenia and the Netherlands lobbied for targets for CO2 truck targets, adding support to calls from Germany's Environment Agency.