SMMT laud green cars

Economists from SMMT, the trade association for the UK motor industry, say that carmakers saved nearly five million tonnes of CO₂ in the last ten years due to the development of greener cars.

Average new car CO₂ has fallen by 22.6g/km to 167.2g/km since 1997, down by nearly 12 per cent. That equates to current annual CO₂ emissions savings approaching a million tonnes.

'Car makers have made significant progress in cutting CO₂,' commented SMMT chief executive Christopher Macgowan.

'Total CO₂ emissions in the UK from cars have actually fallen since 1997, down 3.2 per cent from 72.2 million to 69.9 million tonnes in 2005. That's despite a 16.5 per cent rise in cars on the road from 26.3 to 30.7 million,' added Macgowan.