EU promotes ‘eco-driving’ lessons to deal with fuel shortages

 

EU promotes ‘eco-driving’ lessons to deal with fuel shortages

 

Brussels hopes smarter driving habits will save gasoline and diesel as the Gulf energy crisis drags on.

 

April 17, 2026 1:21 pm CET

By Elena Giordano

https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-promotes-eco-driving-lessons-to-deal-with-fuel-shortages/

 

BRUSSELS — The European Commission has a new brainwave for dealing with a looming energy crisis: Teach Europeans how to drive in an energy-efficient way.

 

The proposal is part of a suite of new ideas for saving energy — from mandatory work-from-home orders to subsidies for public transport — as the EU prepares for worsening fallout from the war in the Persian Gulf.

 

In a draft of its upcoming emergency energy package, obtained by POLITICO and set to be presented Wednesday, the Commission lays out a wide range of measures aimed at reducing consumption — framed as the fastest and cheapest way to curb reliance on imported fuels.

 

"Europe cannot afford to remain exposed to increasingly frequent energy shocks," the document says.

 

At the core of the proposal are practical recommendations to target daily habits. These include the proposal to "raise awareness and offer trainings on eco-driving" to curb fuel consumption, alongside car-free days in cities, expanding bike lanes, promoting cargo bikes for deliveries, and requiring companies to limit air travel for work.

 

Governments are also encouraged to promote at least one day of teleworking per week, slash public transport fares or make them free for some users, and push people away from private car use.

 

Other proposals include encouraging cargo ships to slow down — so-called "slow steaming" — to save fuel, and asking public and commercial buildings to lower boiler temperatures or adjust air conditioning settings.

 

The push comes as the conflict in the Persian Gulf continues to choke up 20 percent of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas trade, resulting in soaring prices and the risk of shortages of jet fuel, diesel and gasoline.

 

The EU spent more than €330 billion on energy imports in 2025, and an additional €22 billion on fossil fuel imports since the beginning of the war in Iran, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Monday.

 

"This shows the enormous impact this crisis has on our economy," she said, warning that disruptions linked to the Strait of Hormuz could persist even if hostilities subside.

 

While EU officials stressed there is no immediate supply shortage, Brussels expects price volatility to continue to hit consumers and businesses, making demand reduction an urgent priority.

 

EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen had already urged Europeans to work from home and cut travel in late March, warning of a "very serious situation" with no clear end in sight. On March 20, the International Energy Agency set out a similar list of demand-side actions.

 

Alongside calls to consume less, the Commission's draft also puts emphasis on protecting consumers with energy vouchers, income aid and temporary bans on power disconnections, as well as tax cuts on electricity and clean technologies.

 

It also outlines a series of broader structural interventions to stabilize the market, including closer coordination on EU gas storage and oil stock releases, and a faster rollout of domestic clean energy such as geothermal and renewable hydrogen.

 

The Commission also signals potential tweaks to the highly debated EU Emission Trading System framework and leaves the door open to national windfall taxes on energy companies.