Agencies Finalize New Greenhouse Gas and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Heavy-Duty Trucks
The cost of new medium- and heavy-duty vehicles are expected to rise as a result of the latest federal standards for manufacturers. On August 16, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) jointly finalized their Phase 2 greenhouse gas (GHG) and fuel efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles in an effort to reduce GHG emissions from new trucks for model years 2018-2027. These standards do not affect existing vehicles.
EPA claims the resultant fuel savings will be significant. The agency estimates the new measures will “save vehicle owners fuel costs of about $170 billion, and reduce oil consumption by up to two billion barrels over the lifetime of the vehicles sold under the program.”
The standards phase in beginning in model year 2021 and culminate in standards for model year 2027 and provide multiple technological pathways to compliance. According to EPA, under Phase 2, the agencies are additionally adopting first time carbon dioxide (CO2) and fuel efficiency standards for certain trailers used with heavy-duty combination tractors. The standards are tailored to each of four regulatory categories of heavy-duty vehicles: (1) Combination Tractors; (2) Trailers Pulled by Combination Tractors; (3) Heavy-duty Pickup Trucks and Vans; and (4) Vocational Vehicles, which include all other heavy-duty vehicles such as buses, refuse trucks, and concrete mixers. As with the Phase 1 program, the agencies are adopting separate standards and test cycles for tractor engines, vocational diesel engines, and vocational gasoline engines. For diesel engines, the standards begin in model year 2021 and phase in to model year 2027, with interim standards in model year 2024.
Vehicle manufacturers are currently reviewing the final standards and according to some news reports appear “cautiously optimistic” about the provisions, but it remains to be seen whether the actual outcomes will match well with customers’ needs. It is likely that engines changes alone will not be enough to meet the new standards; and manufacturers may need to modify vehicle designs, transmissions, and incorporate lower rolling resistance tire technologies. An estimate of the proposed standards (the final is more stringent) found that sticker price increases could be as high as $10-12,000 for Class 8 trucks. No estimates of increases have been released based on the final standards.
For more information, visit EPA’s website to read the new standards or contact AGC’s Melinda Tomaino at tomainom@agc.org.