Diesel switch cheers Greens

THE Green Party has said the swing towards buying energy efficient diesel cars confirms that “green policies do work”.

Taking credit for the success of the VRT regime introduced last year which awards drivers for buying low-emission cars, the party’s transport spokesman said drivers have changed their behaviour because of Environment Minister John Gormley’s policy changes.

A new report by Sustainable Energy Ireland shows that in the second half of last year, 73% of new car purchases were in the most efficient bands – A, B and C. In contrast, in the first six months of 2006, just 43% of car purchases were in this low emissions bracket.

Despite lower vehicle sales in the first half of 2009, the shift towards more efficient cars has held steady, with energy-efficient cars comprising 78% of new cars sold and diesel cars comprising 56% of new cars sold.

According to the SEI Energy in Transport 2009 report, there has not been a move towards smaller engine sizes. Instead, there has been a marked shift towards diesel-fuelled cars, with diesel cars doubling their share of sales between the first and second halves of 2008.

It was also revealed that the downturn in construction led to a 6.7% decrease in road freight activity after many years of growth.

The number of vehicles on Irish roads continues to grow with almost 2.5 million vehicles recorded in 2008, a 2.3% increase on 2007. The majority of vehicles were private cars, accounting for 77% in 2008, while goods vehicles comprised 14% of the total vehicle fleet.

SEI head of strategy, Dr Brian Motherway said that transport accounts for more than one third of Ireland’s primary energy demand.

“The car tax changes have altered our car-buying patterns, and we expect to see this holding firm when the sector recovers and purchasing grows.”