New UK Truck registrations Q3 2017 Down 5.7%, Is DVS to blame?

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has reported a 5.7% downturn in new truck registrations in quarter three of 2017 on same period in 2016. FTA believes that this maybe due in part to the uncertainty around Mayor Sadiq Khan’s Direct Vision Standard (DVS). Commercial fleets are delaying plans to upgrade vehicles until there is more clarity, In effect forcing postponement of adopting new cleaner vehicles in case they aren’t suitable for use in London. FTA has called for DVS to be coordinated with tightening up London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in order to simplify compliance. In a statement FTA’s head of urban policy Natalie Chapman said “The Mayor has scored a spectacular own goal with DVS. FTA, along with everyone living and working in London, wants to see an improvement in the city’s air quality, but this could have happened faster if the new DVS had been better planned. FTA’s submission to the latest consultation on the scheme provides evidence that truck owners and operators are delaying procurement of the cleanest Euro VI vehicles, because they have no idea whether they’ll meet the requirements of the DVS”.