A Comparative Analysis of Taxes and CO2 Emissions from Passenger Cars in the Nordic Countries

Book excerpt: The report discusses how economic instruments can be used to reduce CO2 emissions from passenger cars in the Nordic countries. The analysis indicate that: the registration tax and the annual circulation tax can contribute to a reduction in the average CO2 emission from new cars; company car schemes in the Nordic countries provide incentives for larger cars and increased driving because of subsidies, and this has long term effect as a large share of new cars are registered as company cars but are used as private cars most of their lives; CO2 differentiated taxes can provide incentives to consumers to purchase CO2 efficient cars; targeted broader packages which besides providing tax incentives also offer advantages to more environmentally friendly cars can be more effective than general tax increases; transparency of targets and instruments is crucial for a large diffusion of CO2 efficient cars.