Europe now? Farewell to internal combustion engine cars

Europe now? Farewell to internal combustion engine cars

How much time do we have left to combat the climate crisis? To prevent a climate crisi, climate scientists point out that by 2100 the average global temperature should not rise more than 1.5 C above pre-industrial levels. However, as the earth’s temperature has already risen by 1C from the pre-industrial level, it is predicted that it will reach the Maginot line of 1.5 C within the next 20 years. To stop the fast paced clmate crisis clock, automobile emission regulations are being tightened.

Visible internal combustion engine eviction management

Exhaust gases from internal combustion engine vehicles are one of the main culprits in acclerating the climate crisis. Exhaust gas contains pollutants that cause global warning such as carbon monoxide and nitroge oxides. Among internal combusiton engine vehicles, large amounts are emitted from vehicles equipped with diesel engines. In Europe, where diesel vehicles account for half of all vehicles, it is inevitable to be sensitive to this issue. Accordingly, last year, the European Commision announced ‘Fit for 55’ and proposed a new amendement to the automobile carbon regulations to reduce exhaust gas emissions.

At the heart of the amendement is to reduce the carbon footprint of automobiles by 100% by 2035. This means that we will soon remove internal combustion engine cars from the market. In june of this year, the EU Environment Minister’s Council approved a major bill for Fit for 55, formalizing the elimination of internal combustion engine vehicles. If so, how are EU member states responding to this issue? Let’s look at those cases one by one.

Denmark to ban internal combustion engine taxis

The Danish governement plans to suspend all internal combustion engine taxis by 2030, while converting all taxis to carbon free, eco-friendly vehicles. A taxi with a long average Daily driving distance is bound to emit more than twice as much exhaust gas as a Japanese passenger car. In response, the Danish transport minister also mentioned that ‘innovation in the transport sector is essential to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and succeed in reducing air pollution. As a result, the Danish government passed an amendment to the Taxi Act focusing on eco-friendly vehicles.

From 2025, only eco-friendly vehicles can be issued a new taxi license in Denmark. Until then, the issuance of new taxi licenses will be limited to 500 per year and allotted by lot. Eco-friendly vehicles with no emissions can be guaranteed to get a taxi license first. This is because 300 of the taxis isssued with new licenses are allocated to electirc vehicles or hydrgogen fuel cell vehicles. Meanwhile, by securing an eco friendly taxi seat at the front of the taxi queue, it encourages passengers to more easily choose an eco friendly vehicle. Currently, more than 100 hydrogen taxis are operating in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. 

The Netherlands increase public transport use

The Netherlands is reducing the number of internal combustion engine cars on the road by building a new public transport-oriented transport system. First, the Netherlands provides optimal information about movement to citizens by integrating public transportation such as subways, trams, buses and ferries. At the same time, we are eliminating blind spots in pubşic transportation services and streamlining public transportation operations by analyzing the routes of each public transportation is not biased in one area.

The cross-section of the road centered on public transportation is also worth noting. All roads in the capital city of Amsterdam are basically cross-sectioned for use by sidewalks, bicycles, cars, buses and trams. Of these, only 25% of the space is available for passenger cars. Interference from other means of transport and physical barriers make it difficult for passengers cars to travel above 30 km/h in Central Amsterdam. As a result, the use of automobiles will decrease, which inevitably leads to a decrease in exhaust gas emissions.

Finally, from 2020, the Dutch government has banned diesel vehicles older than 15 or 20 years from operating in the enviromental zone.