The government has asked the EU for permission to not categorize heavy, electric vans as small trucks on an experimental basis. This will allow more people to drive them.
The government with Transport Minister Thomas Danielsen (V) is preparing a new bill that will give electric cars even more advantages in Denmark.
But that requires the EU to say yes first.
The Confederation of Danish Industry writes this this week on its website .
Specifically, the government proposes to equate electric vans weighing over 3,500 kilograms with petrol/diesel vans under the same weight limit.
The current regulations mean that many of the electric vans are actually so-called 'small trucks' in the N2 category. Therefore, they are also subject to requirements such as driving rest time regulations and speed limits.
But according to the government, that should end now. The government has therefore asked the EU for permission to raise the weight limit for electric vans to 4,250 kilograms. In this way, the cars and their drivers will not be subject to the aforementioned rules.
And that's good news. At least if you ask the Confederation of Danish Industries' sub-division, DI Transport. They believe that electric cars should be put on a par with their counterparts powered by diesel or petrol.
– The Minister of Transport should be highly commended for focusing on electric vans in the EU. We have several companies that would like to start driving electric vans, where EU regulations are supporting the green transition, says Rune Noack, transport policy manager at DI Transport.
However, it is far from certain that the Danish wish will come true. The Danish proposal must first be discussed in the EU Commission. And there is no deadline for when this will happen.
