News

We are pleased to present the new HBEFA website! The old website has done its duty for almost two decades, but is now replaced due to technological developments. The new website gives us the opportunity to present information around HBEFA in a fresh look.

The order and support processes for the HBEFA application will remain largely the same for the moment as with the old website: Orders can still be placed using an order form, the INFRAS staff will process all orders and support requests personally as so far, payments are done by invoice.

The only change is that the login area, from which program and other files could be downloaded in the old website, is replaced by a Sharepoint repository. In order to access and download these files, users will receive personal access links by e-mail instead of the login data (user name/password) sent out so far.

Detailed instructions on the new order and download process can be found here.

Questions and comments regarding the new website can be addressed to INFRAS as always.

In several meetings between summer 2022 and spring 2023, the HBEFA workgroup has decided on the updates in the next "major" HBEFA Version 5.1. These will include:

• Complete update of hot emission factors based on new measurement data
• Complete update of mileage and temperature correction functions
• Inclusion of estimated Euro 7/VII emission factors
• Complete update of cold start emission factors, including new cold start emission factors for HDV
• Higher differentiation of HDV with alternative drivetrains (same as for diesel HDV - so far, alternative drivetrains were more aggregated)
• Inclusion of tampered HGV in fleet compositions
• Differentiation of non-exhaust emission factors by processes (brake, tyre, road abrasion and resuspension) and by HBEFA subsegments
• Moped and L-category emission factors in the same methodology as other vehicles (instead of simplified approach used so far)
• Complete update of country activity data and reference scenarios
• Publication of guidelines for the application of traffic situations
• More user-friendly HBEFA application migrated to a new software platform (a Python-based server-client solution)

The tentative time schedule foresees the publication of HBEFA 5.1 in mid-2025.

In the HBEFA 4.2 version from February 2022, an incorrect "charging scenario" is selected by default, which results in charging losses for electric vehicles not being considered.
Please activate the correct setting in the application by selecting menu Info > Electric vehicles > Energy losses > Charging losses and clicking on the "Default" charging scenario (i.e. the only visible scenario).
The installers and database files available in the download area (accessible with each user's personal download link) are up-to-date; therefore with new installations/downloads you do not need to modify this setting.
Please excuse the inconvenience!

Users that have not yet installed HBEFA 4.2 can just install the current version from the download area (accessible with each user's personal download link).
Users with an existing HBEFA 4.2 installation can use the "patch" application available in the download area. You have to download the correct version (32- or 64-bit) matching your MS Office installation (check the installation instructions if you don't know which Office version you are using). Please unzip the patch application, double-click it and follow the instructions on the screen.

‍

A critical error in HBEFA 4.2 has unfortunately been identified: The base emission factors for all Euro VI D-E HDV at 0% load are equal to the factors at 50% load. This needs to be corrected by an update.
We will inform HBEFA users as soon as the update is available. This will take a couple of days. If technically possible, we will implement it in the form of a patch program so that re-installation will not be necessary.
The (much less relevant) error of electric urban bus consumption factors at steep highway gradients that we informed about on Feb. 14 on the HBEFA website will also be corrected in the update.

Some energy consumption factors of battery-electric urban buses on steep uphill motorway traffic situations in HBEFA 4.1 and 4.2 have been found to be incorrect. The reason is that in the detail model PHEM, which produces the base emission factors, the battery capacity was set too low. The error affects motorway traffic situations with uphill gradients of +4% or +6%.
This error will be corrected in the next release of HBEFA.

HBEFA is affected by a bug in a recent office update.
There are two workarounds.

HBEFA Version 4.2 is now available and can be ordered online
The documentation of the update can be found here.
Registered users of Version 4.1 can download Version 4.2 free of charge.

In the HBEFA update of 3.11.2019, the shares of bioethanol in petrol in the Austrian fuel mix were unfortunately incorrect. This affects results for the pollutant "CO2(rep)" for petrol vehicles for the years 2007-2050 in Austria. A patch program to correct these values is available from the download area (accessible with each user's personal download link).

An update of HBEFA 4.1 is now available. This affects mostly results for Austria and Norway. More information can be found here.

Version HBEFA 4.1 (August 2018) is now available and can be ordered online.

Version HBEFA 3.3 (April 2017) is now available and can be ordered online. Users of Version 3.2 or 3.1 can download Version 3.3 directly (free of charge).

Publications of NOx emission measurements of diesel passenger cars in USA and Europe lead to questions regarding the reliability of the respective emission factors for light duty vehicles in HBEFA. This document published by the ERMES group (European Research Group on Mobile Emission Sources) contains information about this issue.