U.S. Eyes More Truck Rules

This story appears in the July 1 print edition of Transport Topics.

President Obama last week announced that the administration will begin work on a new round of fuel-economy standards that will apply to heavy- and medium-duty trucks starting in 2019.

Truck and trailer manufacturers told Transport Topics last week they welcome the government’s collaborative approach to setting standards that improve fuel economy.

Obama included his announcement in a June 25 speech on climate change at Georgetown University — a speech that dealt largely with coal-fired power plants.

“The fuel standards we set over the past few years mean that, by the middle of the next decade, the cars and trucks we buy will go twice as far on a gallon of gas,” Obama said. “And in the coming months, we’ll partner with truck makers to do it again for the next generation of vehicles.”

Issued in 2011, the standards on fuel consumption and emissions call for reducing the maximum levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in trucks and engines manufactured in 2014 and 2017.

The president did not give any details in his speech, but the man heading the effort said work will begin immediately and will be more ambitious than the first standards.

“For the first round, we were eager to get started and do something quickly; so, this second set of standards will be more challenging and more difficult to achieve but worthwhile if we believe that there are still cost savings . . . available to customers,” said Christopher Grundler, director of the Office of Transportation and Air Quality for the Environmental Protection Agency.

Grundler, who spoke June 26 at the Alternative Clean Transportation Forum in Washington, D.C., also said the new standards may include rules for trailers.

He said there was a commitment when the first round was announced to look at trailers, and the government has been talking to manufacturers about aerodynamics, fuel savings and other technologies.

“So all of that will be on the table as we begin this process,” he said.

Charlie Fetz, vice president of research and development for Great Dane Trailers, said EPA could take several different approaches.

The standards may be entirely new or could be existing standards, like those in California, where owners are required to have such equipment as skirts, fairings and low resistance rolling tires on trailers, Fetz said.

“Whichever path they take,” he added, “we’re prepared to offer our input, if requested, and make any necessary changes to comply with the new standards when and if they are implemented.”

The new rulemaking will be much the same as the first round. It will involve all the stakeholders, as well as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Grundler said.

NHTSA and EPA worked together to develop the first fuel standards.

“We expect the same kind of interactive, collaborative process, with the same partners that we worked with last time, which is the DOT, California, engine and truck makers and nongovernmental organizations,” he told TT.

Truck makers said they welcomed the government’s decision to begin work on a second round of standards.

Susan Alt, senior vice president of public affairs for Volvo Group North America, said Volvo appreciates that industry input is being sought.

“We look forward to working together to develop environmentally beneficial standards that also take into consideration the associated economic and operational challenges,” Alt said.

“Daimler Trucks North America applauds efforts to reduce carbon emissions, as evidenced by our GHG14 leadership, and looks forward to improving fuel economy and reducing carbon emissions without sacrificing future vehicle performance,” said Sean Waters, Daimler’s director of compliance and regulatory affairs.

Navistar also said it looked forward to working with EPA.

“Fuel efficiency is a priority for Navistar and our customers, and we continue to be actively engaged in providing solutions for improved fuel efficiency and reduced greenhouse-gas emissions,” the Illinois-based truck maker said in a statement.

Sean McNally, spokesman for American Trucking Associations, said: “We were enthusiastic supporters of the most recent round of standards for heavy-duty vehicles, and we look forward to working with the administration with the goal of setting economically achievable economy standards based on sound scientific research.”

The new standards likely will cover Classes 2-8 trucks, Grundler said. No targets have been set yet for reducing fuel consumption or emissions, Grundler told TT.