The EPA & National Highway Traffic Safety Administration are proposing a roll back of the existing vehicle fleet fuel efficiency standards, which require automakers to gradually increase the average fuel efficiency of their new fleets.
Under the existing regulations, new cars, trucks, and SUVs fleets will need to average about 50 miles per gallon by 2025. The new EPA & NTHSA proposed rule will stop the progression of standards in 2021. Rather that requiring a fleet average of 50 mpg by 2025, the new standard will stop at 38 mpg. Last year, the average fleet fuel efficiency was about 25 mpg. The current average fuel efficiency of all vehicles on the road is about 21 mpg.
Fuel efficiency standards are an important driver that pushes vehicle manufacturers to discover new ways of improving fuel efficiency and are an important strategy toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The transportation sector is the largest contributor to atmospheric CO2 emissions.