Reduced road tolls for zero emissions trucks in the EU. Member states to adopt new systems by 2023
By May 2023, hauliers operating zero-emissions trucks – battery electric or hydrogen – must be given discounts of at least 50% on distance-based road tolls. Member states could opt to levy extra CO2-based charges on fossil fuel lorries instead, or implement both measures.
EU member states might have to introduce incentives on road tolls for zero emissions trucks by May 2023. The European Parliament voted today in order to push each nation to adopt new legislation. According to Transport & Environment (T&E), a primary European organization, the updated Eurovignette Law is «a watershed for green trucking which will benefit the climate, air quality and hauliers, but it called on member states to start work on its implementation immediately». We wrote about such a possibility in this post, back in June 2021.
Reduced road tolls by 50 percent for ZE trucks
«By May 2023, hauliers operating zero-emissions trucks – battery electric or hydrogen – must be given discounts of at least 50% on distance-based road tolls. Member states could opt to levy extra CO2-based charges on fossil fuel lorries instead, or implement both measures. With road tolls costing hauliers up to €25,000 a year per truck annually, switching to zero-emissions vehicles will cut their overheads considerably», T&E stated. Today only four member states charge trucks for their air pollutants, and T&E said making these charges mandatory is a big step towards recovering the full costs of trucking’s impact on human health and the environment. Vans and minibuses will also need to be tolled based on their environmental performance from 2026.
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James Nix, freight policy manager at T&E, commented: «This is a watershed for green trucking. Fossil-fuel trucks will finally have to pay more if they emit more, and hauliers who switch to emissions-free vehicles will slash their costs. But the clock is ticking on national governments to have the cleaner, fairer system in place on time. Europe cannot wait any longer to tackle this major source of emissions».
