United States Air and Radiation EPA420-F-03-044
Environmental Protection December 2003
Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
&EPA Regulatory
Announcement
EPA Finalizes Emission Standards for
New Highway Motorcycles
The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is adopting more
stringent emission standards for new highway motorcycles. Under the
current standards, which are over 20 years old, today's motorcycles
produce more harmful emissions per mile than a car or even a large
sport utility vehicle (SUV). These new standards will reduce the
combined hydrocarbon and nitrogen oxide emissions in the exhaust by
50 percent as well as the harmful health effects of mobile source air
toxics.
Final Rule Highlights
EPA has been working to reduce emissions from motor vehicles for over
thirty years, including emissions standards for highway motorcycles that
we adopted in 1978. In this final rule, EPA is adopting new emission
standards for exhaust and evaporative emissions from highway motor-
cycles. The standards are based on comparable requirements adopted in
California. The final rule extends the California requirements nationwide
two years after they initially take effect in California. In addition to
updating exhaust emission standards for currently regulated motorcycles,
the new emission standards will include previously unregulated motor-
cycles with engines of less than 50 cubic centimeters displacement
(scooters and mopeds). We are also adopting new evaporative emission
standards to control the loss of gasoline (described as "permeation")
through the walls of fuel hoses and fuel tanks. The permeation standards
apply to all classes of highway motorcycles.
> Printed on Recycled Paper
-------
Background
This final rule follows EPA's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM)
published on August 14, 2002 (67 FR 53050) and supplemented by a
notice dated October 30, 2002 (67 FR 66097). We received comments on
the NPRM from a wide variety of stakeholders, including the motorcycle
manufacturing industry, motorcycle user groups, various governmental
bodies, environmental groups, and the general public. In the August
2002 NPRM, we also proposed new evaporative emission controls for
spark-ignition marine vessels. Spark-ignition marine vessels will be the
subject of a separate final action.
Federal regulations currently define a motorcycle as "any motor vehicle
with a headlight, taillight, and stoplight and having: two wheels, or three
wheels and a curb mass less than or equal to 793 kilograms (1749
pounds)" (see 40 CFR 86.402-98). Note that any motorcycle or motor-
cycle-like vehicle that falls outside that definition would be considered a
nonroad vehicle and be subject to different requirements.
Emission Limits
The following table shows the new exhaust standards for highway
motorcycles, including scooters and mopeds.
Highway Motorcycle Exhaust Emission Standards
Class
Class 1
Class II
Class III
Engine Size
(cc)
less than 1 70
170-279
280 and
above
Implementation
Date
2006
2006
2006
2010
HC (g/km)
1.0
1.0
—
—
HC+NOx
(g/km)
—
—
1.4
0.8
CO (g/km)
12.0
12.0
12.0
12.0
We expect these standards to be met through an increased use of tech-
nologies already demonstrated as being effective on 4-stroke motorcycle
engines, such as secondary air injection, electronic fuel injection sys-
tems, and catalytic converters. The standards are not expected to result
in the universal use of catalytic converters.
-------
Health and Environmental Benefits
Nationwide, highway motorcycles are significant contributors to mobile-
source air pollution and produce more harmful emissions per mile than a
car or even a large SUV. Motorcycles currently account for 0.6 percent
of mobile-source hydrocarbon (HC) emissions, 0.1 percent of mobile-
source oxides of nitrogen (NOx) emissions, and less than 0.1 percent of
mobile-source particulate matter (PM) emissions. The highway motor-
cycle standards will reduce the combined emissions of HC and NOx in
the exhaust by 50 percent. Without these further regulations, highway
motorcycles would account for 2.2 percent of mobile source HC and 0.3
percent of mobile source NOx by 2020.
These standards will help reduce the public's exposure to these emis-
sions and help avoid a range of adverse health effects associated with
ambient ozone and PM levels, especially in terms of respiratory impair-
ment and related illnesses. In addition, the standards will help reduce
acute exposure to air toxics and PM for persons who operate or who
work with or are otherwise active in close proximity to these sources.
They will also help address other environmental problems associated
with these sources, such as visibility impairment in our national parks
and other wilderness areas.
It has been 20 years since EPA revised the motorcycle standards. In that
time, there have been many vehicle emission control technology ad-
vances. Since EPA has recently adopted emission standards for off-road
motorcycles as the result of a court order, this is an appropriate time to
update the highway motorcycle requirements.
The current federal motorcycle standard for hydrocarbon emissions is
about 90 times higher than the hydrocarbon standard for today's passen-
ger cars. Although many of today's motorcycles will meet the current
California standards, the current California hydrocarbon standard is still
18 to 24 times greater than the current federal passenger car limits,
depending on the displacement of the motorcycle engine.
Beginning in 2004, all passenger cars, light trucks, and SUVs will be
required to meet even more stringent standards. When these standards
become effective, new SUVs will be meeting hydrocarbon standards
about 95 percent cleaner than today's typical motorcycle.
-------
Costs
We project average costs of $30 per highway motorcycle to meet the
2006 standards and $45 to meet the 2010 standards. This increased cost
is partially offset by a discounted fuel savings of about $6.50 per motor-
cycle due to keeping more gasoline in the fuel tank.
For More Information
You can access documents on this rulemaking on EPA's Office of Trans-
portation and Air Quality Web site at:
www. epa. gov/otaq/roadbike .htm
For further information, please contact the Assessment and Standards
Division at:
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
2000 Traverwood Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
E-mail: ASDInfo@epa.gov
Voicemail: (734)214-4636
------- |