New emissions regulations released for heavy-duty trucks

The federal government says new regulations for heavy-duty trucks will cut greenhouse-gas emissions and give truckers a break on fuel costs to boot.

Environment Canada says the regulations will be phased in between now and the 2018 model year and will produce a cumulative reduction of 19.1 megatonnes of greenhouse emissions over the life of 2014-2018 model year vehicles.

The regulations will cover vehicles such as full-size pick-ups, semi-trucks, garbage trucks and buses and will align with U.S. standards.

"With these tough new measures, GHG emissions from 2018 model-year heavy-duty vehicles will be reduced by up to 23 per cent," Environment Minister Peter Kent said in a news release.

The department says improved fuel efficiency will mean an average saving of up to $8,000 a year for a semi-truck operator in a 2018-model vehicle.

For heavy-duty pick-ups and vans, the department estimates fuel savings of up to $1,200 a year for the 2018 model-year, while vehicles such as buses, freight, delivery, service, cement, and dump trucks, could save up to $1,000 a year.

The news release doesn't say how much these regulations will cost manufacturers.

However, it does say truck makers will be able to use currently available, off-the-shelf technologies such as fuel-efficient engines and aerodynamic cab designs to meet the standards.

And it says the fuel savings will offset any vehicle price increase.

"For all classes of heavy-duty vehicles, the payback period will be less than one year," the department said.

It said the regulations are structured to allow more powerful vehicles to proportionally emit more greenhouse gases "to ensure that vehicles such as buses, garbage trucks and snow removal trucks can continue to perform at a high level."