AMTA  E-News

June  2010

White House Orders Fuel Efficiency Standards for Big Trucks

AMTA members with fleets that enter the United States will want to take note of a recent directive from US President Obama to the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Obama told the two agencies to work together in bringing out specific fuel efficiency benchmarks for 2014-2018 model year trucks, with possibly tougher standards expected beyond. What this means is that for the first time, heavy- and medium-duty trucks will have to comply with national mileage and emissions standards.

A spokesperson with Canada’s national trucking group, Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) said,
”the announcement will hopefully lead to technology, regulatory and taxation reforms that will help eliminate the fuel efficiencies lost by heavy trucks over the last few years because of federal smog control regulations.”

“Fuel is either the first or second leading cost for a trucking company, so intuitively a regulation designed to reduce this cost should be welcomed by our sector, but the devil will be in the details.”

In the last decade heavy truck engines have undergone a series of dramatic emission reductions related to particulate matters and nitrogen oxide. Newly manufactured trucks rolling off the assembly line are virtually smog free. However, while these new trucks are virtually smog free, the engineering required to make this environmental achievement occur causes more fuel to be burned creating fuel efficiency problems.