Industry Group Supports Aims but Raises Potential Technology Concerns
Arlington, Va. – Today, leaders at the American Trucking Associations offered statements of support for the Obama Administration’s second round of greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency rules for commercial trucks, but remains concerned the rule may result in the use of certain technologies on vehicles before they can be fully tested.
“Fuel is an enormous expense for our industry – and carbon emissions carry an enormous cost for our planet,” said ATA President and CEO Bill Graves. “That’s why our industry supported the Obama Administration’s historic first round of greenhouse gas and fuel efficiency standards for medium and large trucks and why we support the aims of this second round of standards.”
Since the first round of efficiency standards were announced in 2011, ATA has been working to evaluate their impact on the trucking industry and has been in constant dialogue with the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to make sure the second round of standards can be effectively implemented by the industry.
“ATA has adopted a set of 15 ‘guiding principles’ for Phase II,” said ATA Vice President and Energy and Environmental Counsel Glen Kedzie, “and based on conversations with regulators and a preliminary review this proposal appears to meet 14 of those.
“We believe this rule could result in the deployment of certain technologies that do not fully recognize the diversity of our industry and could prove to be unreliable. This unreliability could slow not only adoption of these technologies, but the environmental benefits they aim to create,” Kedzie said. “To prevent this, truck and engine manufacturers will need adequate time to develop solutions to meet these new standards.”
Kedzie said fuel is typically a fleet’s first or second largest operating expense and most fleets seek a return on their investment in new equipment within 18 to 24 months.
“In 2014, trucking spent nearly $150 billion on diesel fuel alone,” he said, “so the potential for real cost savings and associated environmental benefits of this rule are there – but fleets will need a wide variety of proven and durable technologies to meet these new standards throughout the various implementation stages.”
