FIA spotlights eco-driving at Sustainable Energy Week

Publication date: 06 March 2009

Sustainable Energy Week

The EU's Sustainable Energy Week is a key reference for policy-makers in Europe. Taking place in February, this year's edition saw the FIA European Bureau team up with European institutions and other major stakeholders. FIA was prominent throughout the week stressing the need to work together towards a common goal of environmentally friendly energy use.

“EcoDriving remains a daily challenge, which must be trained,” said Wilfried Klanner, Technical Director at the FIA European Bureau. Speaking at a stakeholder workshop that brought some 80 high-level stakeholders from industry, NGOs and EU institutions to the FIA European Bureau, Klanner highlighted major findings from the 2008 FIA EcoTour. The seven-day rally from Barcelona to the Hague monitored daily fuel consumption and CO2 emission rates for 42 cars in six categories. Based on the rally findings, Klanner underlined how a combination of fuel efficient cars and eco-driving will save the most money and reduce CO2 emissions. “It makes great sense to promote these issues,” he noted.

The EcoTour rally is, of course, one of a number of FIA-led or run projects ranging from the ANWB participation in the “Het Nieuwe Rijden” initiative in the Netherlands, ÚAMK in the Czech Republic to the FIA’s own “Make Cars Green Campaign”. Another example was given by Reinhard Kolke, Director of ADAC’s Test Laboratory in Landsberg Germany. Kolke set out the benefits of the EcoTest consumer label which provides greater information as to a car’s eco-friendliness. This is one clear way of promoting sustainable mobility.

For Executive Director of the Luxembourg club ACL Daniel Tesch, an important way forward is making drivers feel responsible for their eco-driving habits. ACL has long been pushing for eco-driving to become part of novive driver training. This would provide drivers with the necessary tools to better manage their fuel consumption and mobility costs.

Urban Mobility Conference

The FIA European Bureau was also present at a major European Commission conference on urban mobility. FIA Deputy Director General Caroline Ofoegbu explained, to some 300 delegates, the challenges that clubs see for mobility in urban areas with the introduction of so-called low emission zones (LEZs). “The uncoordinated increase in the number of such schemes in cities across Europe and the associated environmental traffic restrictions place real barriers on mobility in Europe and are overly burdensome for mobile citizens,” warned Ofoegbu. She argued that the effectiveness of LEZ schemes is being increasingly questioned. “Evidence indicates that many schemes are not succeeding in meeting their emission reduction targets at all,” said Ofoegbu.

At the Commission's conference, Ofoegbu presented the latest EuroTest 'park and ride' so as to make clear to participants how cities can develop positive solutions. EuroTest 'park and ride' show that mobility in cities can become more sustainable without resorting to physical barriers, fines or restrictions.

For more information, please contact Olivier Lenz and Frédéric Melchior, FIA European Bureau. All the presentations at the FIA European Bureau event are available here