A new report from the Transport Energy/Emission Research consultancy examines Australia’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard, finding it was weakened by late changes.
Australian vehicle emissions are even worse than official figures show and are likely to fall even further behind the rest of the world unless much more ambitious policies are adopted.
Timothy Welch, University of Auckland, Waipapa Taumata Rau
With the Clean Car Discount under threat, more large, polluting and dangerous vehicles will hit New Zealand roads. That will further discourage walking and cycling.
Air travel emissions are proving difficult and costly to cut, but travellers can make a surprisingly big difference simply by changing how they travel to and from the airport.
A new study estimates a reduction in emissions of only 35-45% of pre-COVID levels by 2050. Lighter vehicles and faster uptake of electric vehicles can dramatically improve progress towards net zero.
The rest of the nation should follow the ACT’s lead. Incentives to boost the transition to electric vehicles are one of the best ways to tackle Australia’s fastest-growing source of emissions.
Canada’s zero-emissions vehicle sales target will need hundreds of thousands of EV charging points to be installed in homes, workplaces, retail spaces and along highway corridors in the coming years.
Air pollution from traffic causes the deaths of thousands of Australians. A swift transition to electric vehicles will save lives – and save households and businesses money in the long run.
These results emphasise the high significance of the transport sector in Kigali’s air pollution levels and the need for further action to address air pollution from the sector.
The push for 30km/h speed limits is not about revenue-raising or anti-cars. Even a seemingly small decrease from 40km/h to 30km/h makes a huge difference to the safety and liveability of local streets.
Australia has a lot of work to do to overcome the challenges facing electric vehicles users, starting with the lack of a comprehensive national charging network.