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Emissions

AIR Index: it’s time to lift the fog on smog The ‘dieselgate’ scandal highlighted a crucial need for change around how cars are tested and how much they actually emit on-road in urban driving. With the introduction of clean air zones in many cities, vehicle selection based on choosing those with the lowest emissions is crucial – but are we getting it right? We asked Nick Molden, co-founder of AIR, to explain the newly launched AIR Index

Air quality and the link to vehicle emissions has never been higher on the agenda. For years, the focus has been on CO2 as a greenhouse gas, but more recently awareness of NOx and its harmful effects has increased. NOx impacts our health and the environment, it causes chronic lung disease, damages trees and plants and in extreme cases, forms smog. And nowhere is the problem more prevalent than in cities. The desire to reduce NOX pollution to improve the health and wellbeing of the millions who live in urban areas has led to the introduction of low-emission zones – measures that control access for the highest polluting vehicles or completely bans them from certain areas. The principle is a sound one: remove the dirtiest vehicles from the worst affected areas. Unfortunately, determining which vehicles are causing the problem is unclear because much of the information being provided is not accurate or truly independent. Until now, policymakers and vehicle buyers have lacked a scientifically rigorous, independent test to measure actual NOX pollution during on-road driving.

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Here at AIR, we have worked with an expert Inspiration from safety ratings academic and industry group to develop the The inspiration behind the AIR Index was AIR Index, a database of on-road vehicle NCAP, the independent vehicle safety rating emissions, using a simple colour-coded visual system developed in the US during the scale from A to E that indicates the difference 1970s. It became an industry standard in between ‘clean’ and ‘dirty’ vehicles. Our the EU and throughout the world, holding intention is to finally clear up the vehicle manufacturers accountable for the NOX issue for policymakers safety performance of their products and consumers – and thereby encouraging widespread The to help fleets reduce innovation and adoption of AIR Ind TCO too. safety technologies. The AIR e x provide At its core, the AIR Index is intended to provide Index is a rating the same encouragement manag s fleet ers with scheme based on for the reduction of NOX, reliable a the robust testing by increasing demand , t r u s t e indepe regime conducted for cleaner vehicles and ndent f d and ramew in accordance discouraging the purchase to infor o rk m fleet with CWA 17379 of high-polluting models. policy and co – the European The AIR Index is ntrol guidelines on real more informative than than TCO drive emission test current tests including WLTP methodology. The AIR (World Harmonised Vehicle Testing Index shows ‘at a glance’ Procedure), which is still laboratoryhow clean a vehicle’s tailpipe based, and RDE (Real Driving Emissions), emissions are, enabling easy comparison for which although based on real-world informed decision making. emissions, doesn’t truly come into force until

DRIVING THE SWITCH TO CLEANER FLEETS | www.greenfleet.net


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