Emissions of new cars in the UK fell 3.5% to an average of 144.2 g/km CO2 in 2010 according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders’ (SMMT) 10th annual CO2 report. Average CO2 emissions from new cars have fallen by more than 20% since 2000.
The 2010 CO2 emissions fall is one of the highest annual reductions on record but lower than the 5.4% improvement recorded between 2008 and 2009. It appears, though, that the rate of improvement in emissions slowed in the second-half of 2010. An earlier report by the SMMT showed that average new car CO2 emissions fell 4.7% in the first half of 2010 compared with the same period in 2009. The scrappage scheme, which ended in March 2010, was a significant factor in this trend.
Cars in the sub-130 g/km CO2 category represented almost 40% of the market in 2010 compared with less than 1% in 2000. Nearly 40,000 vehicles were exempt from Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) with emissions under 100 g/km.
According to the report, reductions in average emissions were made across all model segments compared with 2009 levels, contributing to the significant drop over the past decade. Luxury sedans and MPVs made the biggest reduction over the past year, falling 6.4% and 6.0% respectively on 2009 figures. Executive (-28.1%) and Mini (-25.8%) segments recorded the biggest improvements against the levels of 2000.
New technology has delivered impressive reductions in CO2 emissions but coordinated action, to support research and development, new infrastructure and consumer incentives, is critical to securing significant future advances. The economic and political challenges of high fuel prices, energy security and climate change are shared issues that must be addressed at an international level.
—Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive