Setting CO2 emission performance standards for new heavy-duty vehicles

Briefing 13-09-2018

This initial appraisal assesses the strengths and weaknesses of the European Commission's impact assessment accompanying its proposal for a regulation setting CO2 emission performance standards for some categories of new 'rigid lorries' and 'tractors'. The proposal seeks to contribute to achieving the climate target set by the Paris Agreement, adopted on 12 December 2015, i.e. 'holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels'. In addition, it intends to help Member States achieving the national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets in the road transport sector for the period 2021-2030 set by the 'effort sharing' regulation proposed by the Commission. The appraisal concludes that the impact assessment clearly defines the problems to be addressed, although in a couple of cases only one option is considered (in addition to the baseline). In such cases, the Commission's approach appears not to be entirely in line with the better regulation toolbox. The analysis carried out appears to be sound and well evidenced, providing ample and detailed insight into the issues considered. The analysis of impacts focuses on the economic and environmental dimension, consistently with the manner in which the problems have been defined. Their quantitative assessment is based on three models which, according to the IA, have already been 'successfully' used in previous impact assessment regarding transport, energy and climate policies, The IA appears to have addressed all of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board's recommendations, and the legislative proposal seems to be consistent with the analysis carried out in the IA.