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FIM Position: MOTORCYCLES AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme
In general Road transport is a large contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. The European Union has laid down several goals to decrease the emission of especially CO2 and NOx. National and local authorities are also trying to reduce CO2 and NOx emissions within their boundaries. Some have already banned or are planning to ban older vehicles, including motorcycles, or demand high tolls to enter cities, e.g. Paris and London. Furthermore, taxation schemes are being developed that are based on fuel consumption and exhaust emissions, e.g. in Norway. These developments demand an appropriate answer from the motorcycle industry and motorcyclists themselves in order to preserve a role in future mobility schemes. Contribution of motorcycles to a cleaner environment - Motorcycles are smaller and lighter than cars and therefore already contribute to less fuel consumption and less pollution.
- Motorcycles are able to keep moving where cars are stuck in traffic jams, which means they use less fuel and pollute less.
- Motorcycles have become much cleaner in the last decades and will become even cleaner with the implementation of the Euro 5 emission limits in 2020.
- Less energy is needed to produce and scrap motorcycles than is needed with cars, because motorcycles are much smaller than cars and much less material is used to make them.
Actions to make motorcycling cleaner - Motorcyclists should be aware of the fuel consumption and emissions of their motorcycles and make a balanced choice when they purchase a new motorcycle. To be able to do this the manufacturers of motorcycles should provide motorcycles with consumer-information about fuel consumption and emissions of CO, CO2 and NOx.
- Manufacturers of motorcycles should keep on developing cleaner motorcycles by enhancing the environmental performance of internal combustion engines, and at the same time develop more low and zero emission engines.
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