WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States is proposing new fuel efficiency standards for a range of medium and large trucks that will reduce carbon emissions, the US Environmental Protection Agency announced in a statement.
“The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are jointly proposing standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles that would improve fuel efficiency and cut carbon pollution to reduce the impacts of climate change,” the EPA announced on Friday.
The proposed fuel efficiently standards would apply to semi-trucks, pickup trucks, vans, buses and work trucks in models made between 2021 and 2027.
While these truck types account for only five percent of all traffic on US roads, they represent 20 percent of transportation greenhouse gas emissions and oil use, the EPA said.
“These reductions are nearly equal to the greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy use by all US residences in one year,” EPA said.
The total oil savings would be more than the US imports from Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) member in a year, the Agency added.
Drivers and business that rely on trucks would also save money in the long run. The EPA estimated fuel savings from the investment in fuel efficient transport would pay for itself in two years.
US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx explained in the statement the goal is to force trucks in the United States to be more environmentally friendly while concurrently helping to decrease US truck fuel usage and the cost of shipping for manufacturing companies.
The new proposals will be phased in and rely on manufacturers developing and choosing the right technologies to achieve the fuel efficiency gains.
