Energy efficiency index for transport

  • Energy efficiency of transport improved by 0.7%/year, on average, between 2000 and 2022, as measured by ODEX that combines the energy efficiency trends of the different modes of transport (cars, trucks and light vehicles, bus, motorcycles, air, waterways, rail).
  • Energy efficiency progress for cars was slower (0.4%/year), and quite low since 2014, because of an increase in the specific consumption of new cars, due to two main factors: a decrease in diesel shares (from 56% in 2012 to 18% in 2022) and a growing share of SUV (from 25% to around 50%, according to ACEA).
  • For trucks and light vehicles, energy efficiency has been improving rapidly since 2012 (1.4%/year). There was no efficiency progress between 2008 and 2012 because of the economic crisis.
  • Important energy efficiency progress was achieved over 2000-2022 in rail transport (2.2%/year).

Energy efficiency index by mode (EU)

  • Discrepancies are observed in energy efficiency gains in transport in EU countries: from around 2.5%/year in Greece and Romania to less than 0.5%/year in  Czechia, Hungary, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Croatia.

Energy efficiency gains for transport by country (2000-2022)