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On Tuesday (28 June), men and women huddled in the European Convention Centre in Luxembourg and weighed the evidence against the internal combustion engine.
They considered the pros and cons of a ban, its economic impact, the chances of job losses, and what their decision would mean for the future.
And at around two o’clock in the morning, having debated for hours, a death sentence was passed: From 2035 it is now almost a certainty that it will be impossible to purchase a brand new car that runs on petrol or diesel in the European Union.
It is a seismic decision which will reverberate across the continent and shape the future of personal mobility.
Mere hours before, it had seemed improbable that any sort of deal on CO2 standards for cars and vans would be reached by the Council of the EU. At the very least, a stay of execution was expected, as countries such as Italy and Portugal sought to push back the 100% phase-out date to 2040.
And yet the French EU Council presidency, which had made concluding the Fit for 55 files before the end of their rotating six-month stint a priority, found a workable compromise.
Despite the prior objections voiced by a slew of member states, the amended text gained sufficient support to get over the line.
Given the European Parliament’s support for a 2035 ban, it is now virtually certain that ICE-powered cars will fall away as the dominant vehicles on European streets.
Of course, the change will come slowly. The average lifespan of a new car is some 15 years, meaning even after the ban comes into effect a sizable portion of Europeans will continue to fuel rather than charge their vehicle.
But it is a clear signal from those in power to car manufacturers that the sun is setting on the internal combustion engine as the foremost automotive technology.
The discussions in Luxembourg did, however, produce a last-minute sting in the tale – a potential reprieve for the condemned.
A review clause inserted into the text by Germany – a requirement under the German government’s coalition agreement – obliges the European Commission to prepare a report exploring the feasibility of using “CO2 neutral fuels” and plug-in hybrid technology to meet the 2035 zero-emission requirements.
What this report will mean in practical terms remains to be seen (particularly given that EU climate chief Frans Timmermans has been outspoken in his belief that e-fuels have no role to play in decarbonising passenger cars).
But to the fuel industry, the clause is proof that the door has not fully closed on liquid fuels powering vehicles – at least as part of plug-in hybrids.
A preamble inserted into the text additionally asks the Commission to make an exemption for vehicles that are “outside the scope of the fleet standards” to run exclusively on CO2-neutral fuels, which is widely believed to apply to vehicles such as ambulances and fire engines.
Of course, heavy-goods vehicles will also take longer to fully embrace new power trains, but for most drivers, the days of shifting gears are numbered.
After years of speculation and uncertainty, argument and counterargument, the die is cast. The end of passenger cars and vans powered by the internal combustion engine is now in sight.
Review of car rental intermediary websites finds widespread violations
An EU-wide screening of websites brokering car rentals found that more than half do not comply with EU consumer protection rules.
Results published on Monday (4 July) show that only 45% of the 78 websites checked adhered to EU standards. The sweep took place ahead of the holiday season, a popular time for car rentals.
The intermediary websites examined include hotel booking websites and airline websites, which increasingly include options to rent a car.
“Consumers need to be provided with information in full transparency about the conditions of the rental and the role of brokers,” said EU Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders.
“For example, consumers need to know which company they should contact if their flight is postponed. They also need to receive clear and complete information about the full price of the rental and insurance – to avoid bad surprises when picking up the car,” he added.
Authorities carrying out the review found many of the websites provided incomplete information on mandatory charges.
Almost a third of websites did not state who consumers should contact if they need to make a complaint, while more than a quarter failed to clearly mention what is included in the car insurance package.
National authorities will now contact the websites to rectify the issue and potentially take enforcement action.
German court imposes higher fines on SUVs for dangerous driving
One of the strange contradictions of our modern era is that our enhanced understanding of road transport’s contribution to climate change has not heralded a switch to smaller, more efficient cars – in fact, the opposite is true.
Today, SUV sales are surging across much of the EU. The more we fret about global warming, the more we embrace our desire to drive gargantuan vehicles.
Perhaps it stems from a belief that we have ravaged the climate so irredeemably that we should live it up before the apocalypse comes, like cracking open champagne on the decks of the Titanic.
Or maybe it’s motivated by a panic that green legislators will step in and put a stop to the sales, like an alcoholic ordering a round of doubles before the bar closes.
Whatever the psychology, a recent German court case shows there may be downsides for drivers of SUVs beyond expanding their carbon footprint.
A district court in Frankfurt am Main has ruled that SUVs should be subject to higher fines than other cars if they commit a traffic infraction, Der Spiegel reported.
The reasoning given by the court is that the enhanced weight and size of SUVs increase the chance of significant injury if a pedestrian is struck – a ruling borne out by studies.
In the case in question, where a driver ran a red light at an intersection, the fine was raised from the standard €200 to €350, with the court dubbing the violation “more serious than normal”.
EU nations approve end to combustion engine sales by 2035
Environment ministers from the EU’s 27 member states approved the end of the sale of vehicles with combustion engines by 2035 in Europe, officials announced early Wednesday (29 June), marking a major victory in the EU’s bid to reduce CO2 emissions to net-zero by 2050.
EU deal on car CO2 standards leaves door ajar for e-fuels
The decision by EU countries in the early hours of Wednesday (29 June) to ban the sale of polluting vehicles by 2035 was widely seen as a death sentence for the internal combustion engine in the EU. But a clause inserted into the deal during late-night negotiations among ministers in the EU’s Environment Council is being viewed by some in the fuels industry as a partial reprieve.
EU carmaker regions clamour for ‘just transition’ aid scheme
With the 2035 ban on the production of new combustion engine cars almost set in stone, carmaker regions of the EU have banded together to demand a support mechanism to ease the transition, similar to that implemented for coal regions.
EU Commission fails to assuage MEPs’ concerns over alleged biofuels fraud
The European Commission has rebuffed a request by Parliament lawmakers to turn over information related to used cooking oil (UCO) imports, maintaining that it is not in possession of the documents requested. However, it did admit that the risk of “false claims” surrounding UCO imports represents “a particular concern”.
EU alliance seeks to prepare aviation sector for clean aircraft rollout
A new EU-funded alliance aims to prepare the bloc for the introduction of zero-emission aircraft by upgrading Europe’s aviation infrastructure to meet the needs of electric and hydrogen-powered jets.