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https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/article/2024/may/23/australia-ev-electric-vehicle-sales-emissions-suvs-net-zero>
"Australia’s love for SUVs and utes could wipe out the emissions reductions
from fuel efficiency standards and the uptake of electric vehicles, a new
government report has warned.
On Wednesday the infrastructure department released a roadmap on achieving net
zero emissions in the transport sector, warning that without further action it
“is projected to be Australia’s highest emitting sector by 2030”.
The roadmap asks for feedback on a range of possible solutions that are not yet
government policy, such as targets or incentives for “active” transport options
– such as cycling or walking – and public transport and greater support for
e-bikes and scooters.
It described the fact that “Australians increasingly prefer heavy passenger
vehicles like SUVs [sports utility vehicles] and utes” as a “potential
challenge to decarbonising light vehicles”. The report noted that “sales of
bigger and heavier cars such as SUVs are the fastest growing vehicle segment”.
SUVs accounted for more than 50% of new vehicles sold in Australia in 2022, a
share that has almost doubled over the past decade “despite higher registration
fees for heavier vehicles”, the roadmap said.
“These trends have the potential to offset any reduction in emissions we may
see from fuel efficiency improvements and the increased adoption of electric
vehicles.
“These vehicles consume more energy and fuel per kilometre than smaller
vehicles, resulting in higher emissions and effectively cancelling out the
savings made by higher EV sales.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
