Obama Administration announces new fuel standards for trucks

President Obama announced new fuel-efficiency standards today for work trucks, buses and other heavy vehicles, saying they will reduce fuel costs and better protect the environment.

"While we were working to improve the efficiency of cars and light-duty trucks, something interesting happened," President Obama said in a statement. "We started getting letters asking that we do the same for medium and heavy-duty trucks. They were from the people who build, buy and drive these trucks."

"And today," he added, "I'm proud to have the support of these companies as we announce the first-ever national policy to increase fuel efficiency and decrease greenhouse gas pollution from medium and heavy duty trucks."

The plan calls for reduction targets among three types of heavy vehicles: big rigs or semis (up to 23%), heavy-duty pickups and vans (up to 10%), and diesel-run vehicles (up to 15%).

"These new standards will reduce fuel costs for businesses, encourage innovation in the manufacturing sector and promote energy independence for America," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

From the White House:

Today, President Obama will meet with industry officials to discuss the first-of-their-kind fuel-efficiency and greenhouse gas pollution standards for work trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles and to thank them for their leadership in finalizing a successful national program for these vehicles.

This meeting marks the administration's announcement of the standards, which will save American businesses that operate and own these commercial vehicles approximately $50 billion in fuel costs over the life of the program.

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) developed the standards in close coordination with the companies that met with the president today as well as other stakeholders, following requests from companies to develop this program.

The cost savings for American businesses are on top of the $1.7 trillion that American families will save at the pump from the historic fuel-efficiency standards announced by the Obama administrations for cars and light-duty trucks, including the model year 2017-2025 agreement announced by the president last month.

Under the comprehensive new national program, trucks and buses built in 2014 through 2018 will reduce oil consumption by a projected 530 million barrels and greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution by approximately 270 million metric tons.

Like the administration's historic car standards, this program - which relies heavily on off-the-shelf technologies - was developed in coordination with truck and engine manufacturers, fleet owners, the State of California, environmental groups and other stakeholders.

The joint DOT/EPA program will include a range of targets which are specific to the diverse vehicle types and purposes.

Vehicles are divided into three major categories: combination tractors (semi-trucks), heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans, and vocational vehicles (like transit buses and refuse trucks).

Within each of those categories, even more specific targets are laid out based on the design and purpose of the vehicle.

This flexible structure allows serious but achievable fuel-efficiency improvement goals charted for each year and for each vehicle category and type.

The standards are expected to yield an estimated $50 billion in net benefits over the life of model year 2014 to 2018 vehicles, and to result in significant long-term savings for vehicle owners and operators.

A semi-truck operator could pay for the technology upgrades in under a year and realize net savings of $73,000 through reduced fuel costs over the truck's useful life.

These cost-saving standards will also reduce emissions of harmful air pollutants like particulate matter, which can lead to asthma, heart attacks and premature death.

By the 2018 model year, the program is expected to achieve significant savings relative to current levels, across vehicle types.