Developments in the transport industry have in recent years moved in a greener direction for the benefit of many - if you have not yet read our blog post about the growing environmental awareness in the industry, you can read it right here.
The interest in green transport is not only among passenger cars but the sale of electric trucks is also steadily increasing. However, this development is not without challenges, and for some, the green transition may seem unmanageable and completely intangible. In this blog post, we highlight some of the issues that green transport faces and which we hope will be easier in the future; because we need to act for the sake of the environment.
A barrier of charges
"The transition to green transport is currently meeting the schism that there is a basic political desire to preserve the high tax revenues," says Danske Vognmænds CEO Erik Østergaard during a panel debate at the Danish Chamber of Commerce's conference on the green transport of the future.
He emphasizes that it helps to slow down the development of new fuels and that the transport industry needs benchmarks for where efforts must be made to be internationally competitive. Erik Østergaard elaborates that motorists are charged DKK 50 billion annually in taxes - respectively in the form of fuel taxes and maintenance of infrastructure.The more efficient and greener the carriers become, the more the state loses in revenue. Despite this, he emphasizes that it is important for the state to invest financially early in the process so that the Danes do not lag in the international competition.
A growing uncertainty
The lack of presence from politicians is questioned. This is because the government's climate partnership binds the transport sector to ambitious climate goals. This creates uncertainty about what technology to invest in and what it takes for society and companies to achieve goals.
In addition, Erik Østergaard believes that politicians should think realistic, to help companies choose the best solution; otherwise, they may end up losing competitiveness to foreign competitors.
DTL has previously highlighted precisely this issue and states:
"Denmark has high ambitions for the green transition, and the transport industry is on the line. But the haulers are challenged since there is no clear answer as to what the right path for the transport industry's transition to more green transport and less use of fossil diesel is."”
Cleaner city or pure confusion?
A step towards a greener future is the environmental zones, which came into force back in July 2020. The purpose of the zones is to ensure cleaner air in the country's largest and most densely populated cities. The downside, though, is that it can be hard for drivers and haulers to navigate the new restrictions. You can become wiser on the environmental zone rules in our blog post right here.
Using cameras located at the access roads to the environmental zones, the necessary data is obtained to ensure that vehicles traveling in the zones meet the requirements. If a vehicle does not meet the requirements, you as a hauler can look forward to a fine of DKK 12,500 for trucks and buses.
Is the development going too fast?
The green transition in the transport industry is necessary, but it is also a necessity that both haulers and drivers can keep up with developments.
In Denmark, we are generally competitive in the environmental field, and in this connection, is it important to remember that the transport industry is not a competitor, but an important player in the development.
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