Heavy-Duty Truck Regulations Aim to Cut Emissions by 25 Percent

The Obama administration is implementing new standards governing fuel efficiency and emissions of heavy-duty vehicles like trucks and buses. According to the EPA, the measures will cut U.S. carbon pollution by roughly 1.1 billion metric tons and reduce U.S. oil consumption by as much as 2 billion barrels of oil over the lifetimes of vehicles sold under the program, which covers model years 2018-2027.

The new standards were proposed last year and were recently finalized. They would require fuel consumption of tractor trailers, delivery trucks, school buses, and other large vehicles to be reduced by 25 percent between model years 2021 and 2027. In addition, heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans will be required to increase efficiency by 2.5 percent each year during that same period. The standards build on previous regulations that mandated truck makers cut pollution by 270 million metric tons between 2014 and 2018.

With the 2018-2027 standards, referred to as Phase 2, regulators expect automakers to use both currently available technologies, including stop-start capability and hybridization, and technologies that will be available soon to meet the requirements. No specific technology is mandated, however, so how automakers achieve the goals is up to them.

As before, regulators will offer ABT (Average, Bank, Trade) compliance credits that automakers can use to offset a less compliant vehicle in the lineup, save for use in the future, or trade with other automakers. The credits are intended to encourage the rollout of new technologies and reduce the cost of compliance. The ABT program continues into Phase 2 with minor changes but will not be offered for trailers because the nature of that industry makes it difficult for manufacturers to benefit from such a program. A unique averaging program is being finalized instead for makers of dry and refrigerated trailers.

Source: EPA

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