The European Commission’s Greening Corporate Fleets initiative must incentivise transport operators to purchase zero-emission vehicles, not force them, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) has claimed.
The European Commission’s working programme for 2023 anticipates an initiative on the greening of corporate fleets. The IRU has cautiously welcomed this new initiative, which could provide a non-binding framework for Member States to incentivise private operators to adopt clean technologies.
However, the initiative could lead to the opposite, forcing private operators to buy zero-emission vehicles, in total contradiction to the principles of a market economy.
The IRU and Taxis 4 Smart Mobility have called upon Transport Commissioner Adina Vălean to incentivise transport operators to purchase zero-emission vehicles without breaching ownership rights and the freedom to invest private capital.
IRU EU Advocacy Director Raluca Marian said: “Small and medium-sized enterprises operate on thin margins. They are responsible for their profitability and fully bear any financial losses.
“The EU cannot tell them how to invest and dictate their market choices.”
“The European Commission’s work on the greening of corporate fleets would truly benefit the sector, and the EU’s broader decarbonisation goals, if the outcome was a recommendation for Member States to use positive government incentives to encourage the uptake of vehicles based on carbon-neutral technologies,” she added.
