Integrated COPERT emissions calculation in PTV Visum 2025

PTV Visum 2025 allows the calculation of road transport emissions directly within the transport model. Emissions are calculated based on the COPERT methodology and data sets developed by e:misia. COPERT is part of the EMEP/EEA guidelines for the calculation of air pollutant emissions and is used in the EU27 and other countries. In this article, we will explain the concepts of integrated emissions calculation and show how the emissions calculation is configured and used to assess the environmental impact of scenarios.

What is COPERT?

COPERT (Computer Programme to calculate Emissions from Road Transport) is a recognized software tool developed by e:misia on behalf of the European Commission. It calculates energy consumption and emissions from road transport based on a detailed set of factors – vehicle population, mileage, speed, fuel type and emission standards.

The COPERT methodology is consistent with EMEP/EEA guidelines and is widely used in the EU27 and other countries. With emission factors covering more than 800 vehicle types in five main categories – passenger cars, light commercial vehicles, heavy-duty trucks, buses, and L-category vehicles – it provides a standardized basis for emissions assessment.

Why COPERT is now integrated into PTV Visum

For more than a decade, PTV Visum supported HBEFA for emission calculations (HBEFA is a tool similar to COPERT). However, COPERT has become the standard in many European countries. By integrating COPERT into Visum, users now benefit from a consistent, transparent and widely adopted method for assessing environmental impacts in transport models. This update ensures broader applicability and regulatory compliance, especially for countries and projects that adhere to EU emissions protocols.

Using COPERT in PTV Visum

With COPERT now embedded directly into Visum, users can perform emissions calculations without external tools. Here’s how it works:

• Data Integration: COPERT datasets are natively available in Visum. This includes emission factors by speed class and gradient, as well as fleet compositions per vehicle category, year, and country.
  
• Fleet Composition Mapping: Users can define and assign COPERT-based fleet compositions to specific demand segments within their transport model.
  
• Scenario Setup: Three example scenarios – Base Year 2024, Future Year 2030 (Do Nothing), and Future Year 2030 (Do Something with electric buses) – demonstrate how the tool can assess the environmental impact of different policy or technology choices.
  
• Computation and Outputs: Users select desired pollutants (e.g., CO₂, NOₓ, energy consumption), input appropriate link volumes, and execute procedures to calculate and analyze emissions.
  
• Result Visualization: Outputs can be displayed per kilometer, by demand segment, and aggregated by territory. Attributes and indicators are customizable for easier scenario comparison.

Demo

The demo featured here showcases a hands-on implementation of COPERT in the PTV Visum environment using the city of Halle as an example. From setting up fleet compositions to executing emissions calculations and visualizing the results across three scenarios, the demonstration highlights the practical benefits and capabilities of this integration.

👉 Watch the full video for an in-depth walkthrough of the demo:

Conclusion

The integration of COPERT in PTV Visum 2025 marks a significant upgrade in environmental modeling for transportation planning. It provides users with standardized, regulatory-compliant tools to simulate, evaluate and compare emissions scenarios directly within the familiar Visum interface.

Whether you’re working on urban policy development, infrastructure planning or sustainability assessments, this new functionality enables smarter, more informed decisions – in line with Europe’s environmental goals.