the ANWB’s international symposium 'Sustainable energy for the automotive sector: towards zero emission?'
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Ladies and gentlemen,
It is an honour for me to stand before you today. It is fantastic to see that the ANWB has so many international friends. It’s no secret that we in the Netherlands are rather proud of the Dutch Automobile Association [Algemene Nederlandse Wielrijders Bond] or the ANWB. It has been a beacon in the world of mobility for 125 years, always involved in Dutch society and the issues with which we are all faced.
Over all of those years the ANWB has stood firm for mobility in the Netherlands, by directing the way or by helping in the event of a breakdown on the road. The ANWB and my ministry also stand side by side in the fight to reduce traffic jams. On 9 October, for instance, the ANWB is organising a traffic jam free day in which people are encouraged to plan their day sensibly and to make a break with their daily travelling pattern. Guido, this is a great opportunity to once again emphasise how much I appreciate your efforts in this field.
Today, it’s about sustainable energy and mobility. By choosing this topic, the ANWB shows that it not only has a rich past, but also an eye on the future.
Climate change and dependency on fossil fuels force us to take a critical look at how we deal with energy. How can we ensure that both we and future generations continue to be mobile?
The key is sustainable mobility. This involves a transition to clean and efficient automobility. We have to start using much more sustainable, renewable energy. This will allow us to reduce CO2 emissions and our dependency on oil. That is certainly a tough challenge, but consider the fact that diesel motors today are fifty times cleaner than they were in 1975. This has been achieved through technological innovations, and that’s the area we have to continue focusing our efforts on. My ultimate vision is clean mobility with zero emission– quiet, safe and comfortable. We’re taking the road towards sustainable mobility so that our society remains mobile and healthy.
Sustainable development and economic growth can go hand in hand – I’m convinced of that. Think about it: the Netherlands is densely populated, we have a lot of traffic and an intricate system of roads. There are great opportunities for a country like ours. Imagine, driving cars with zero emission! That might just be as revolutionary as the transition from the horse-and-buggy to the combustion engine!
In order to get to that point, I'm pushing both the supply and demand of sustainable automobiles and fuels.
First of all, let’s talk about the supply side. The government can definitely play a role in this: we can facilitate experiments and create the right circumstances for the market to push through innovations. We have to give the incentive to be inventive. In the Netherlands, we’re encouraging that with the innovation programme ‘Driving the Car of the Future’.
The car of the future is not that far away. Innovative vehicles and fuels have already been developed; they just have not yet been introduced on a large scale. I see it as my task to bridge the gap between the lab and the market so that innovative products get to the market. After all, there’s no point if technological knowledge is available but companies are afraid to utilise it because of investment costs, for example.
Government and business are working together to get the car of the future on the road, for example by building alternative fuel stations or experimenting with innovative public busses. These are much cleaner and more efficient than conventional busses. The first of these busses will hit the road in 2009. The great thing is that, once the busses have proven themselves in practice, the government will compel large-scale investment by means of concessions.
Next year a similar experiment will be performed with hybrid and electrical company vehicles in city traffic. Hybrid and electrical vehicles are especially well-suited for cities, with all the braking, stopping, standing still with the motor running and re-accelerating. This consumes a lot of energy and thus contributes significantly to CO2 emissions. Hybrids and full electric vehicles can make a difference in this regard. By testing how hybrid and electric delivery vans perform in practice, entrepreneurs will be able to make a well-founded decision to maintain a cleaner and more efficient fleet of vehicles.
It is a responsibility of the government to think outside the box. The set framework we envision when we talk about mobility involves a car and a road, right? However, in the near future, vehicles and developed areas will be much more closely connected. Imagine, for example, a full electric vehicle which is not only a means of transport but also a large battery which can receive surplus energy from wind turbines. Once you arrive home and connect the car to the network, this energy can be transferred again for use in the house. Certainly such a vision of the future is worth exploring.
Naturally, it is good to take stock of the advantages and disadvantages of the various alternative fuels, just as you did during the debate. For the time being, however, I’m not going to commit one hundred percent to one alternative energy source. This is simply because the various technologies are still being developed. It is also very possible that we will end up utilising a mixture of the options.
So far I’ve mostly talked about promoting the supply of innovative vehicles and fuels; yet increasing the demand for these innovations is just as important. We do this in the Netherlands by means of financial incentives, among other things.
You might already know that we will be introducing a road pricing system here, the first time this has been done for an entire country. Once that has been fully implemented in 2016, people in the Netherlands will not longer pay for owning a car, but for using it. Whoever drives less, pays less, and whoever drives more, pays more. Also, cars that pollute more will be more expensive than clean cars. In this way we are encouraging consumers to make a conscious decision to purchase an energy efficient car with little to no CO2 emissions.
In addition, we are making it easier for people to purchase a green car. Car taxes have been green-friendly since 1 January 2008, and that is working like a charm. Hybrid cars are becoming increasingly popular and gas-guzzling SUVs are falling out of favour.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Sustainable mobility is not that far away; it’s about the choices we are making now. It is up to us – government, business and consumer organisations working together. Because it is only together that we can take full advantage of the opportunities offered by the transition to sustainability mobility. That is why I am very enthusiastic about the continuation of an earlier campaign started by ANWB, together with the World Wildlife Fund and many other branch partners to encourage the public demand for clean and efficient cars. In this way the ANWB is taking very practical action in its mission to promote sustainable mobility, now and in the future.
Keep going strong, and congratulations once more!
Thank you.