US Department of Transportation doubles down on gas, cuts fuel efficiency standards

The Department of Transportation under President Donald Trump is moving to reverse more of the climate policies that had been enacted by President Joe Biden. Under a proposed rulemaking by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, fuel efficiency standards for cars and light trucks in model year 2031 will be reduced to an average of 34.5 miles per gallon, down from the standard of 50.4 miles per gallon that was part of Biden's plans to encourage more adoption of electric vehicles among US drivers.

The move was expected since Trump re-took office. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy ordered the NHTSA to review fuel efficiency standards in January a day after he assumed the title. The current administration also ended a tax credit for buying electric vehicles over the summer. In the meantime, international manufacturers are racing ahead in their progress on building better EVs, offering other ...