Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT)’s Post

This week's Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Transport News Brief lead comment, Political change by the busload hree weeks on from the General Election and the Kings Speech followed through on Labour’s manifesto commitments to improve many of the UK’s wider industrial needs that will have a significant positive impact on the automotive sector, from green and affordable energy to improved trade relationships, skills reform, gigafactories and grid infrastructure. The programme had an obvious focus on economic growth so it’s pleasing that growing England’s bus fleet is an early priority within that wider mission. After all, a booming bus sector is so important for local communities and regional economies to thrive too. With bus franchising already well established in London, where the majority of Britain’s zero emission buses have been rolled out, the Better Buses Bill can be a significant enablers for local authorities to deliver their own decarbonisation goals. In addition to improving local air quality, the modern passenger experience that zero emission buses provide can also help increase ridership levels, as studies such as the Welsh Government’s TrawsCymru T1 pilot service have found, https://lnkd.in/eRgUVaGj. All commercial vehicle sectors need equal support, however, if decarbonisation is going to be a success. From vans and minibuses to heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) and coaches, delivering more public charging infrastructure is the key to accelerating uptake of the very greenest models. While the Plug-in Van Grant must remain in place until we reach a point where infrastructure is no longer a barrier to making the switch, the HGV sector urgently needs a more timely Plug-in Truck Grant that’s fit for a new generation of fleets, this was part of the SMMT paper launched at the CV Show in April https://lnkd.in/eYQbKwyX. The previous government’s plans for a minibus driving licence derogation, meanwhile, which would have qualified standard licence holders to drive zero emission vehicles up to 4.25 tonnes has real potential to boost electric adoption. It’s crucial that this legislation makes the transition to new government in the near future. SMMT looks forward to making the priorities of our commercial vehicle members clear in our representation to the new government, however, another major benefit of membership is the business networking and partnership opportunities we provide. One such instance came last week with SMMT’s Meet the Van Converter, connecting light commercial vehicle manufacturers and van converters in one-to-one meetings. With more than 25 businesses and some 57 meetings, feedback from businesses was outstanding. If you’re not a member and would like to get involved, please get in touch via [email protected].