European Interest

First-ever EU rules to check CO2 emissions from heavy-duty vehicles

Flickr/EU2017EE Estonian Presidency/CC BY 2.0
“This agreement is proof of Europe's firm intention to curb the growing CO2 emissions from heavy-duty vehicles,” said Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete.

A provisional agreement on the European Union regulation for monitoring and reporting CO2 emissions and fuel consumption data from new heavy-duty vehicles (lorries, buses and coaches) was approved by representatives of the European Parliament and the Council on March 27.

This is the first ever EU legislation focusing on the CO2 emissions from these vehicles.

According to a European Commission press release, monitoring and reporting CO2 emissions and fuel consumption of new heavy-duty vehicles will increase transparency enabling transport operators to make well-informed purchasing decisions and save fuel costs. It will also drive innovation amongst European manufacturers.

“This agreement is proof of Europe’s firm intention to curb the growing CO2 emissions from heavy-duty vehicles,” said Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete. “I thank the European Parliament and the Council for their work to reach this ambitious outcome. With this new robust, reliable and transparent monitoring and reporting system, we are on track for the next step: CO2 emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles to be proposed in May 2018.”

The provisional agreement must now be formally approved by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers bringing together the national governments of the EU member states. Following approval, the regulation will be published in the EU’s Official Journal and enter into force 20 days later.

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