by Brianna Crandall — November 3, 2010—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced on October 25 the first U.S. standards to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and improve fuel efficiency of heavy-duty trucks and buses, beginning with the model year 2014.
The standards are projected to reduce emissions by about 250 million metric tons and to save 500 million barrels of oil over the lives of the vehicles produced within the program’s first five years, as well as foster technologies beneficial for the economy, energy security, and air quality. The heavy-duty sector, from the largest pickups to 18-wheelers, emits about 20 percent of U.S. transportation emissions, according to the EPA.
EPA and DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are proposing new standards for three categories of heavy trucks: combination tractors (the semi trucks that typically pull trailers), heavy-duty pickups and vans, and vocational vehicles.
EPA and NHTSA are providing a 60-day comment period on the standards.
