SUV Trend Hinders 30% Reduction in Motor Emissions, Report Finds
A report by the Global Fuel Economy Initiative (GFEI) has found that motor emissions could have decreased by over 30% between 2010 and 2022 if vehicles had not increased in size, primarily due to the popularity of SUVs. The average weight of light-duty vehicles (LDV) has reached an all-time high of over 1.5 tonnes, and the average footprint of new models has increased to 4.2 sq metres. The report calls for government restrictions on vehicle sizes to reverse the SUV trend and achieve the GFEI goal of doubling car fuel efficiency by 2030. The reduction in emissions has been driven by the uptake of electric vehicles (EVs), which reached a 15% market share in 2022. Strong growth in EV markets, such as China and Europe, has led to significant energy efficiency improvements, while North America lags behind with a lower EV market uptake.