Changes to driving licence flexibility for alternative fuel vehicles

Changes to driving licence flexibility for alternative fuel vehicles

In 2019, the UK committed to meeting net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. To support this goal, the UK government commitment is to phase out the sale of new petrol/diesel cars and vans from 2030 and by 2035, all new cars and vans zero emissions at the tailpipe. Phasing out the sale of new internal combustion engine (ICE) cars and vans is essential to meeting our legally-binding carbon targets and air quality goals. In 2021, the UK sold more plug-in EV vans than any other country in EU.

In 2018, the UK secured a derogation from the European Commission which allowed category B licence holders to drive alternatively-fuelled goods vans (AFV’s) with a maximum authorised weight of 4,250kg, over the standard 3,500kg entitlement. Above 3500kg GVW is the threshold where a large van is technically classed as a heavy goods vehicle (HGV), requiring a higher class of licence. However, alternatively-fuelled vehicles (AFVs) have an increased gross vehicle weight (MASS) compared to their petrol and diesel counterparts. This is due to the additional weight of their powertrain. The derogation was granted to avoid constraining payload for operators using cleaner, alternatively-fuelled options. Despite this extra weight, these vehicles are equivalent in function and appearance to large vans.

Typically, a driver operating above 3500kg GVW, must have a category C or C1 licence. This includes upfront licence acquisition, medical examinations and training for a driver certificate of professional competence. The government recent announced that “they have no plans to remove this derogation and are seeking consultation on potential measures to optimise this policy.

Currently, category B drivers must undertake 5-hours of additional training before being permitted to operate AFV’s up to 4250kg GVW on public roads. A reformed training process could include provisional entitlement to operate these vehicles, offering practical training experience.

The additional weight from AFV powertrains is likely to be centred around the chassis or underneath the cab rather than high up in the load space. This low centre of gravity helps to minimise negative impacts on the handling and manoeuvrability of the vehicle. As such, 4,250kg AFVs should not be significantly more difficult to operate than 3,500kg equivalents.

We expect that the derogation will continue to primarily benefit large fleet operators. These operators generally impose vehicle competency testing and medical declarations on their drivers, further mitigating any potential road safety considerations.

The current derogation applies exclusively to vans driven for the purpose of transporting goods.

The current derogation for 3,500kg to 4,250kg AFV goods vans defines ‘alternative fuel’ as:

While some of these fuels are zero emissions, others emit carbon and various pollutants from the tailpipe, so would not meet the requirement for all new cars, vans and certain HGVs to be zero-emission at the tailpipe in 2035.

Officials from the Department for Transport will continue to engage with the devolved administration in Northern Ireland to consider if these regulations could also be applied there. Any decision to do so would be for the Department for Infrastructure Minister, as driver licensing is a devolved matter.

The DoT are considering how the transition to zero emission vehicles is affected by vehicle weights. This includes the impact which regulations for vehicles weighing above 3,500kg, designed for HGVs, have on large alternatively-fuel vans.