The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders launched its Ultra Low Carbon Truck strategy at its International Automotive Summit in London today. The aim is to help truck makers and operators deliver ever more efficient and thus lower carbon transport for the UK.
“With increasing pressure to improve efficiency, cut fuel use and carbon emissions, the SMMT has responded with a strategy that will help truck makers and operators deliver even lower carbon transport,” said Martin Flach, UK product director for Iveco and member of the SMMT’s truck technical committee, launching the strategy.
Flach was speaking at a session led by Jonathan Murray of the LowCVP and including Simon Chapman, chief economist, at the FTA and Jack Semple, policy director at the RHA. Panellists Jason Vallint of AA DriveTech, Derek Beevor of Roadtech Computers and Dave Greenwood of Ricardo will also contribute to the session, its debate and Q+A session.
The main points of the strategy are:
- Cutting emissions depends on cutting fuel use.
- Success is as much in the hands of operators as vehicle makers.
- Authorities need to agree a way to measure truck and freight CO2 emissions.
- Low carbon technology needs to be proven.
- Operators need incentives to use low carbon technologies.
“For a truck, the priority is the weight or volume of its cargo and the need to deliver. We need to measure fuel use and resulting CO2 emissions against the amount of freight and the distance for which it is carried,” said Flach.
“We need to measure the cost per tonne per kilometre. Measured on that basis, modern, large and heavy trucks are more fuel efficient than smaller, lighter vehicles.
“One fifth of the UK trucks are at least ten years old. We need suitable incentives to encourage operators to replace them with more efficient and more modern models.”
Modern, Euro 5 trucks produce over 80% less noxious emissions than trucks of ten years ago. Freight moved on today’s 40 and 44 tonne trucks can use far less fuel and produce far less CO2 per tonne than Euro 2 trucks of just ten years ago.
The size of the UK’s heavy truck fleet hasn’t changed in 60 years. It does move five times as much freight as it did in the 1950s, but that is thanks to better trucks and dramatically increased efficiency.
Road transport delivers over 85% of the UK’s freight and the nation’s economy. Over 85% of us use the car rather than public transport for reasons of cost, efficiency and speed. We send freight by road rather than rail for the same reasons.
Click through to download the Ultra Low Carbon Truck Strategy.
