Polluting trucks could be supplied in Europe beyond 2040, according to a new European Union (EU) plan that Transport & Environment (T&E) fears would make the net-zero climate objective difficult to achieve.
The planned 90% CO2 reduction target for truckmakers, according to the green organization Transport & Environment (T&E), almost guarantees that diesel freight trucks will still be on the road ten years later, in 2050. Transport & Environment (T&E) asked MEPs and governments to adopt a zero-emissions date of 2035 instead.
According to the plan, truck manufacturers must lower the average CO2 emissions of new vehicles by only 45% by 2030 (relative to 2019/2020 levels).
Fedor Unterlohner, freight manager at T&E, said, “The failure to set a deadline for polluting trucks is a craven concession to truck manufacturers. By 2035 virtually all new electric lorries will be cheaper to run than diesels while driving as far and carrying as much. But without a clear EU deadline, diesel trucks will pollute our lungs and the planet for years longer than necessary.”
T&E mentioned that the EU’s 2030 aim is behind the ambitions of truck manufacturers.
“Ambitious EU climate rules are driving the electrification of cars and are badly needed for trucks. Without more stringent targets from 2030, there will be a glut of polluting diesel lorries still on our roads for decades to come,” added Fedor Unterlohner.
Before settling on the final law later this year, the European Parliament and EU countries will discuss the issue. Trucks account for only 2% of vehicles on the roads yet account for about 30% of EU road transport CO2 emissions, according to GHG statistics from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
