“Diesel bus use is expected on the road to emission-free inner cities”

From 2025, emission-free pickup trucks will need to be supplied to the inner areas of many cities. However, various regulations and exceptions make it attractive for entrepreneurs to quickly purchase diesel pickup trucks.

For example, new diesel vans and trucks purchased before 2025 will be able to continue operating until 2028. This puts pressure on the initial impact of these zones, called zero emission zones.

This emerges from a market study by energy company Joulz. This was confirmed by entrepreneurs and personalities from Bovag and the RAI Association.

A previous tour of NOS had revealed concerns from municipalities and business owners about upcoming legislation, such as a full electricity grid, high costs and a lack of charging sites. This situation is also difficult for municipalities: The capital requested diesel trucks in the tender for garbage trucks ahead of the 2025 deadline.

Joulz company, which organizes the electricity supply to 20,000 commercial customers, states that capital is not alone in this regard. He was left scratching his head when he received several requests in recent months for companies to prepare for the transition to electric vehicles. So they started asking customers why these requests were not being met.

What happened? “Almost no one has really studied the issue of electrification,” says Joulz boss Sytse Zuidema. “There are a lot of opportunities that aren’t ready to launch yet, and that’s why they’re being used.”

Few electric vehicles

The proportion of electric vehicles in trucks is very low: One in 30 (new and old) trucks purchased this year was electric. The market share of electric vans is increasing faster. But according to Zuidema, this is still too slow, especially considering that from 2030 large municipalities will need to ensure zero emissions in their inner cities.

What is likely playing a role in the rapid purchase of diesel pickup trucks is the removal of the BPM exemption for entrepreneurs in 2025. In layman’s words: Until then it is worth buying a (diesel) pickup truck, because then Entrepreneurs should only pretend to be special. individuals. Pay purchase tax (bpm). From then on, this tax will also be tied to a vehicle’s CO2 emissions.

The RAI Association, the professional association of automobile importers, expects this cancellation to have the opposite effect: “The sustainability of the vehicle fleet will be delayed rather than accelerated.” Many diesel cars will still be available for purchase in 2024, and then this market will grow even further. it does not work anymore.” It will collapse in 2025.

‘Unworkable’

RAI is aware that entrepreneurs have not yet switched to electricity on a large scale: “The rate is increasing, but the trend has not yet reversed.” Automobile industry club Bovag sees the same thing: “Our members produce their own electricity.”

City logistics instructor Walther Ploos van Amstel had previously warned about this: In his opinion, the regulations are often too broad and the list of exceptions too long.

Fleet manager John Laagland from Volendam electrical engineering company Cas Sombroek opted mainly for diesel fuel when renewing the fleet (fifty vans) two years ago: “Otherwise it would be too expensive and we don’t have space for that many charging stations here.” Not to mention that this infrastructure already exists in Amsterdam. “This is not possible for many entrepreneurs.”

“Diesel explosion”

Zuidema says this is a shame: “I actually thought the municipalities did this quite fairly. This was announced a few years ago and everyone involved was given five years. Many customers try things, but only a few get the right result.”

According to Zuidema, this will be a problem because something like this takes time to prepare. “Network bottlenecks are now well known, and as a company, you can expect long waits for connectivity in some places. “If you suddenly want to switch to electric within a year, it’s not easy.”

He expects a “diesel boom” before 2025. However, according to Zuidema, parties waiting for electrification will lose. “Parties already operating will soon have a head start. The transition is inevitable.”

Zero emissions zones will be established in the following communities:

Source: NOS

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