Haulage operators have slashed NOx emissions from trucks in the UK by at least 59% in only six years according to government statistics.

Department for Transport figures show a continual year-on-year decline since 2013 and the Road Haulage Association (RHA) predicts the industry will have reduced its NOx output by at least 80% by 2025.

The RHA said the industry’s £1.9bn investment in Euro VI vehicles is driving the huge reduction as it published its annual NOx Emission Assessment from heavy goods vehicles.

Welcoming the report, Chris Ashley, the RHA’s Head of Policy on the Environment, said the latest assessment shows what can be achieved when well-designed standards, in this instance Euro VI, are phased in sustainably.

“As the government’s ‘green recovery’ agenda gathers pace we believe this positive experience can be applied to the decarbonisation agenda, but a repeat of DEFRA’s flawed Clean Air Zone policy must be avoided,” he said.

“Hauliers are willing to invest in the technology needed for a clean environment but they must have confidence that the regulatory framework will not retrospectively undermine that investment.”

The RHA also believes that imposing high charges on technology deemed ‘obsolete’ without first checking there is a sufficient supply of the desired technology is a recipe for disaster. It leads to stranded assets, market distortion and waste.