European Commission presents plans for cleaner transport future

The European Commission has published plans for a low-carbon, energy-efficient transport sector. 

The new strategy includes plans to increase the number of fuel-efficient conventional vehicles and also to begin an industrial roll-out of electric vehicles.

Establishing emissions standards and implementing green technologies are also important aspects of the strategy.

The proposals also call for more to be done to encourage people to make the switch to cleaner transport, including different energy taxation measures.

“Better incentives need to be created for the efficient use of conventional fuels and the gradual uptake of alternative low-carbon emitting fuels,” says the European Commission.

The proposals will also consider additional ways of reducing CO2 emissions from road transport, such as eco-driving, Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS), infrastructure measures, and urban transport management.

It is anticipated that a ”robust procedure” will be developed by 2012 to measure real world emissions from vehicles.

Less polluting vehicles have the potential to strengthen the economy and reduce unfair health differences, according to a WHO report on health equity in urban settings.

“Health risk assessments in a number of countries have concluded that vehicle-related air pollution causes thousands of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases cases and deaths each year at an estimated cost of billions of dollars,” the WHO says.

To download the WHO report on health equity in urban settings, please go to the WHO website.

More information about the European Commission strategy on clean and energy-efficient vehicles can be found here.

[Photo: “Sunny traffic jam” by P-and-A, available under a Creative Commons License]