{"id":18693,"date":"2018-08-01T12:12:06","date_gmt":"2018-08-01T17:12:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/climate411\/?p=18693"},"modified":"2018-08-01T12:12:41","modified_gmt":"2018-08-01T17:12:41","slug":"clean-cars-are-safer-and-cheaper-to-drive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.edf.org\/climate411\/2018\/08\/01\/clean-cars-are-safer-and-cheaper-to-drive\/","title":{"rendered":"Clean Cars Are Safer and Cheaper to Drive"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"This post was written by EDF consultant Chester France, who served as a Senior Executive at EPA and led the development of vehicle standards at the agency<\/em><\/p>\n

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Very soon, the Trump administration is expected to propose<\/a> dramatically weakening America\u2019s Clean Car Standards<\/a> under the Orwellian title \u201cThe Safer and More Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule.\u201d<\/p>\n

Actually, a decade-long record shows lower-polluting cars are safe and can contribute to a continuing reduction in traffic deaths. Strong Clean Car Standards also save Americans money at the gas pump.<\/p>\n

The misleading title of the expected proposal \u2014 and the findings it insinuates \u2014 is just the latest example of the Trump administration manipulating analyses to achieve its desired result. A February 2017 email<\/a> from Trump transition team member and professional climate denier David Schnare<\/a> describes a White House order to set these rollbacks into motion, underscoring that this decision was preordained and not based on any analysis of facts or law.<\/p>\n

Here are some facts you should know about clean cars, savings, and safety.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Clean Car Standards save Americans\u2019 hard-earned money<\/strong><\/p>\n

With strong clean car standards, Americans save hard-earned money at the gas pump.<\/p>\n

A new analysis by M.J. Bradley & Associates<\/a> finds that with the current Clean Car Standards in place, owners of model year 2025 cars would see net savings of up to $5,000<\/strong> over the lifetime of their cars compared to model year 2020 vehicles, and trucks owners could save up to $8,000<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

The vast majority of families who finance their car purchase will start saving money as soon as they drive a car off the lot. For all families, their savings continue as long as they own their vehicle.<\/p>\n

In contrast, the new M.J Bradley report finds that the Trump administration\u2019s proposed rollback would cost Americans in every state. With the anticipated rollback, an average family will spend $200 more every year<\/strong>, and could spend as much as $500 more every year<\/strong> if gas prices continue to rise \u2014 with low-income and long-commuting Americans particularly hard hit.<\/p>\n

Extensive safety analysis supports strong Clean Car Standards<\/strong><\/p>\n

Multiple federal agencies \u2013 including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the lead federal agency charged with vehicle safety \u2013and the California Air Resources Board have done extensive, sophisticated technical assessments whose findings support the existing Clean Car Standards. The National Academy of Sciences<\/a> has also carefully investigated the existing standards and found they are unlikely to lead to safety problems.<\/p>\n

The studies, analyses and crash-worthiness simulations conducted during these assessments have resulted in thousands of pages of data showing that the Clean Car Standards are fully compatible with safer vehicles and fewer fatalities \u2014 and roundly rejecting the administration\u2019s false contention that the standards harm vehicle safety.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, the Trump administration \u2013 and a politicized NHTSA \u2013 is expected to rely on two deeply flawed assumptions to make its case that strong Clean Car Standards harm safety:<\/p>\n

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  1. Strong Clean Car Standards force vehicle manufacturers to make lighter cars which they claim could be less crash-worthy.<\/li>\n
  2. The higher price of these vehicles will result in owners keeping their older, less safe vehicles longer, rather than replacing them with newer, safer models.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The facts sharply contradict the administration\u2019s conclusions:<\/p>\n

    Vehicle safety is fully compatible with the latest clean car advancements<\/strong><\/p>\n