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In an Australian first, the National Transport Commission (NTC) has now released the nation's most comprehensive report on carbon dioxide emissions intensity from 17 million cars on our roads today.

The NTC’s ‘Light Vehicle Emissions Intensity in Australia: Trends Over Time’ report analyses data from the cars registered since 2003 and still in use today, providing a richer and more complete picture of emission trends than ever before.

"One of our key findings is that for light vehicles that entered the fleet since 2003 and are still registered, the average emissions intensity is 193.7 g/km – compared to an average of 165.2 g/km for new cars sold in 2023,” said NTC CEO and Commissioner Michael Hopkins.  

“Nearly all the vehicles (93 per cent) with an emissions intensity of less than and up to 120 g/km entered the fleet in the years since 2014.”  

“From 2017 to 2021, Australia’s emissions intensity from new vehicles sold dropped by less than a per cent each year. Looking back, we actually performed better between 2002 and 2016 when emissions intensity fell by 28 per cent over the period.”  

“But there is good news: the emissions intensity for new vehicles sold in 2023 was down by 5 per cent compared to 2022, marking the largest percentage drop since our reporting began.”

While Australia is making progress on cutting vehicle emissions intensity, we’re still behind many developed countries. Our emissions intensity from new passenger vehicles is slightly above those in the United States and Canada, and significantly higher than the average of European Union nations.  

The report shows that more people are choosing electric vehicles from a greater range, with 127 models available in 2023, up from just six in 2015.  

The average driving range of our battery electric vehicles (BEVs) keeps getting better too and is now 470 km – 100 km higher than in 2021.  

“More choice and better driving range have contributed to a 151 per cent increase in the number of BEVs and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) sold in 2023 compared to 2022,” Mr Hopkins said.  

"But you don't need to buy a BEV right now to make a difference to emissions. Nearly 100,000 hybrid vehicles were sold in 2023 so there were more than 435,000 on our roads as of January 2024. It's made a material difference to emissions reductions.”

"Price matters too but it's not the most expensive cars that are always the best performers when it comes to emissions. Small cars costing less than $30,000 that were sold in recent years had an average emissions intensity of less than 165g/km.”

Our report confirms Australia’s enduring love for our Commodores and Falcons. Many years now after local manufacturing ended, these models remain among the top 10 on our roads.

“However, with an average emissions intensity of around 260 g/km, these vehicles reflect a broader trend: over 75 per cent of today’s vehicles exceeding 250 g/km have been on our roads for over a decade. They were also built here at a time when there were many more small, lower emitting vehicles on our roads. Vehicles in the small class have dropped from 24 per cent of all sales in 2013. By 2023 it was down to just 7 per cent.”  

The report highlights that our vehicles are getting bigger.  Light vehicles first registered in 2003 had an average footprint of 8.29 m2, but this had increased to 8.78 m2 in 2023.  

Our research also shows Australians have developed a preference for SUVs. They made up 59 per cent of all new light vehicles sold in 2023 and there were 6.48 million on our roads at the start of the year.  

With new insights into how the cars on our roads are contributing to carbon emissions intensity and people's preferences, governments now have a bigger picture that can help in developing new initiatives to support the electrification of transport.  

Details of the report can be found on the NTC website at www.ntc.gov.au/light-vehicle-emissions-intensity-australia.

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Media contact: David Imber ph: 0413 274 204

Notes to editors: The NTC is an independent statutory body charged with improving the productivity, safety and environmental performance of Australia’s road, rail and intermodal transport system.