Abstract:

The European Green Deal calls for net-zero economy-wide emissions and a 90% reduction in transport emissions by 2050. To achieve the net-zero target by 2050,the European Commission has proposed strengthening the current 2030 greenhouse gas reduction target from at least 40% to at least 55% compared to 1990 levels. TheCommission is now revisiting its sectoral plans and policies to achieve these targets,including the post-2021 CO2 standards for cars and vans in mid-2021 and for trucks and buses in 2022. A new ICCT paper identifies several possible levels of stringency for therevised post-2021 CO2 standards and compares these emissions pathways to the EU’s climate and transport decarbonization goals.

The analysis evaluates tailpipe CO2 emissions from light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles in the EU from 2020 to 2050 under currently adopted policies and three new policy scenarios: lower ambition, moderate ambition, and higher ambition.