EU rules mandate the disclosure of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions data for new cars sold or leased within the EU, enabling consumers to make informed decisions. With significant policy and market advancements since the last evaluation in 2016, the European Commission is currently reviewing the effectiveness of these regulations through a public consultation (19 March 2024 – 16 April 2024).
Based on our members’ expertise in mobility behavior and sustainable transport, ECTRI encourages the European Commission to consider replacing the existing Directive with a Regulation that harmonizes car labelling across all member states.
The key components of our proposal:
(a) introducing a coloured code with A to G categories, similar to the one established in the Energy Efficiency Directive;
(b) establish absolute CO2 emission values for each category;
(c) establish regular revision of such emission values as way to keep fuel efficiency and CO2 emission reduction as an on-going objective for vehicle manufacturers;
(d) extend labelling to new vans and to second-hand cars and vans;
(e) include information and ideally labelling on pollutant emissions (NOX and PM), establishing consistent categories at the EU level to replace the multiplicity of emission thresholds currently applied in low-emission zones in the continent.
By adopting these measures, we can empower consumers to make more informed choices, incentivize the automotive industry to prioritize sustainability, and contribute to the collective effort towards a greener, more sustainable future.