Future vehicles: quieter AND more fuel efficient

The European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee (ENVI) is currently considering a Commission proposal [COM (2011) 856] for a Regulation on the sound levels of motor vehicles. The proposal, if adopted, will replace the existing vehicle noise directive (70/157/EEC), including enforcing tighter noise emission limits for cars, vans, lorries and buses and updating the testing method. Parliament is also considering how, on average, new cars should achieve a CO₂ limit of 95g/km as stipulated in Regulation (EC) No 443/2009. Concerns have been raised that making vehicles quieter is in conflict with making them more fuel efficient and lowering CO₂ emissions.