Washington, Dhu-AlQa'dah 13, 1437, Aug 16, 2016, SPA -- US environmental and transportation officials on Tuesday signed a directive on new fuel-economy standards for heavy-duty vehicles in a move designed to cut greenhouse gas emissions, dpa reported. The new standards are for school buses, large pickup trucks, delivery and passenger vans, garbage trucks and long-haul tractor-trailer rigs. When fully implemented in coming years, officials said the standards would cut 1.1 billion tons of carbon pollution from the atmosphere and save nearly 170 billion dollars in fuel costs. The new standards were developed in response to a directive put forth in 2014 by President Barack Obama. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said in a news release that the new standards would promote cleaner, more fuel-efficient trucks by encouraging the wider application of existing technologies and development of new technology through model year 2027. "The actions we take today on climate change will help lessen the impacts on future generations," EPA administrator Gina McCarthy said. The standards will "significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions while driving innovation." The EPA developed the standards with the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Heavy-duty vehicles account for more than 20 per cent of carbon pollution and without action, the amount of emissions is expected to grow, the White House said. -- SPA 21:52 LOCAL TIME 18:52 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w