One of the world’s largest car manufacturers has announced that it will stop sales of passenger diesel cars in Europe by the end of 2018i.
Citing “strong consumer demand” for petrol-electric hybrid cars, Japanese firm Toyota this week announced that it will focus on selling those instead.
Running cars on electricity rather than petrol or diesel helps prevent poor air quality, which is estimated to be responsible for up to 8 million premature deaths worldwide each year.
European cities are starting to steer away from diesel. Numerous Dutch cities have banned diesel cars from their streets. Last month, the top administrative court in Germany ruled that cities in the country also have the right to ban diesel cars.
UN Environment is the founding partner of the Global Fuel Economy Initiative, which supports countries to introduce cleaner, more efficient vehicle standards – including measures to import cleaner ones. The Initiative aims to achieve a 50 per cent improvement of vehicle fuel efficiency worldwide by 2050.
Read more on our guidance to drive improvements in air quality - including through cleaner transport - here.
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i Toyota Europe Newsroom, 5.3.18: Toyota enters next phase of its European powertrain strategy
