PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
Passenger cars are the single largest energy consumer and CO2 emitter of all energy-demanding technologies in the EU. Furthermore, there is a widening gap between the declared CO2 emission rates for new vehicles – determined via laboratory testing – and the actual emissions during real driving conditions. Though official figures show a decreasing trend in CO2 emission levels of new cars in the EU, in reality they have hardly decreased in recent years. The differences are even higher for NOx emissions, in particular for diesel vehicles, where average real-world emissions can be more than four times higher than those measured in the laboratory under test conditions. Consumers are thus losing trust in official fuel consumption and emission figures provided by vehicle manufacturers and public authorities, which ultimately undermine the EU’s commitments to reduce carbon emissions and compromise legislation on vehicle taxation designed to incentivise uptake of low-carbon and fuel-efficient vehicles. Disparities also potentially slow down the pace of technological innovation necessary for the transition to a near zero emissions and low-carbon transport system.
OBJECTIVES
The goal of the MILE21-LIFE project was to enable consumers to make informed decisions regarding the purchase of low emission and low fuel-consumption vehicles.
Specifically, the project aimed at:
- developing a consumer website on new vehicle fuel consumption and emissions;
- gathering existing vehicle emissions data and develop a methodology for providing a first real-world estimate and informing decisions on purchases;
- developing a mechanism for harmonising vehicle emissions data;
- developing a concept for carrying out on-road measurements using on-board measurement devices;
- developing a concept for regularly storing real-world fuel consumption data in the vehicle itself;
- developing a strategy for transferring the project outputs;
- monitoring the impact of the planned communication activities;
- developing a communication tool to promote the MILE21 platform.
The project contributed to the implementation of EU emission reduction commitments under UNFCCC Kyoto Protocol, the directive on the promotion of clean and energy efficient road transport vehicles, and the EU regulation that sets emission performance standards for new passenger cars and for new light commercial vehicles.
RESULTS
The project's website that provides information to the consumers on the consumption and emissions of vehicles has been created and the relevant application where each user can register consumption, driving style, type of vehicle and other relevant information has been developed. The platform (website and application) has been accessed by 14 000 individual users by the end of the project. The development of the normalisation mechanism of vehicle emissions, which aims to bridge the gap between theoretical and real consumption and emissions figures has been completed. The team carried out on-road measurements in several vehicles to test the developed methodology.
