Mercedes Benz appears to have taken the lead in cleaning up their vans in more ways than one and the decision to go the extra mile in providing green vehicles is paying off.
Southwark Council in London have just ordered 47 Mercedes Benz Sprinter vans to help keep the streets of the borough clean. The vans will be used to collect rubbish and recycled items from the borough’s citizens and according to the Councils Business Unit manager, the contract was given to Mercedes Benz because, not only did the vans comply with the Euro 5 emissions policy, it also complied with the stricter Enhanced Environmentally-friendly Vehicle (EEV) standard which is voluntary.
For the last few years, European guidelines on vehicle emissions have been getting gradually tougher as the effects of the noxious chemicals coming from our vehicles have been highlighted by scientific tests. The chemicals identified as being environmentally unfriendly are; Non Methane Hydrocarbons, Total Hydrocarbon, Nitrous Oxide, Carbon Monoxide and especially particulate matter. EEV limits are far more robust then the compulsory Euro 5 emissions standards with approximately 30% less emissions required for a van to pass the EEV standard.
Mercedes Benz have taken the lead on rival commercial vehicle manufacturers by managing to get their vehicles below the limits without fitting a particulate filter, instead they have done it within the standard engine. How big a step they are in front of rival van manufacturers was indicated by the purchase of the vans by Southwark Council whose spokesman said only Mercedes Benz could provide vehicles with both Euro5and EEV standard along with the ECO start system, which lessens emissions by cutting the power to a stationary vehicle after two seconds.
It is a distinct possibility that in the future having a van that complies with the EEV standard could well impact on a commercial vehicle insurance quote.