UK Climate Change Programme 2006 - JNCC - Defra

CHAPTER FIVE
Transport
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In 2004, the transport sector was responsible
for around 27 per cent of total UK carbon
dioxide emissions. Emissions had risen to about
10 per cent above 1990 levels by 2004. We
estimate that including the expected impact of
the new measures in this Programme, emissions
are expected to be at the same levels in 2010.
Similarly greenhouse gases had increased by
around 12 per cent between the base year and
2004 and we estimate that they will be at
about the same level in 2010 with the new
measures described in this chapter.
Introduction
1. It is important to be clear why transport
emissions are rising, especially at a time when
emissions from most other sectors are falling. As
the economy grows, people travel much further
than they used to and buy more goods from all
over the world.
The Government is committed to reducing the
impact of travel on the environment and with
the devolved administrations is promoting
policies to reduce the fossil carbon content of
transport fuels, increase the fuel efficiency of
vehicles and encourage a move towards more
environmentally friendly forms of transport.
Measures included as part of the 2000 Climate
Change Programme are projected to save around
5.1 MtC by 2010. The voluntary agreement package
(including reform of company car taxation and
graduated vehicle excuse duty – 2.3 MtC),
wider transport policies (0.8 MtC), sustainable
distribution (in Scotland – 0.1MtC) and the fuel
duty escalator (1.9 MtC) are the main contributors.
New measures delivering savings to 2010 include:
• the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation
which will require 5 per cent of all UK fuel
sales to come from renewable sources by
2010-11; and
• further improving the fuel efficiency of new
vehicles, for example through use of fiscal
incentives and by working to develop
options on how to move forward beyond the
first phase of the EU voluntary agreements
with automotive manufacturers after 2008.
Together it is estimated that these new
measures will contribute an additional 1.7 MtC
savings in 2010, bringing total savings in 2010
to 6.8 MtC. Further unquantified carbon
savings will be delivered through measures to
help people make smarter travel choices,
including using more fuel efficient vehicles.
Also, looking beyond this programme, we will
continue to work towards the inclusion of
aviation in the EU emissions trading scheme.
2. As they get more prosperous, they also tend to
choose to travel in a way that uses more carbon.
Instead of walking, they are more likely to take
the bus and instead of taking the bus they go by
car or by train. They also heat their homes more
and their businesses use more fuel. But the
impact on travel is larger because in a growing
economy the demand for transport fuel grows
faster than the demand for other kinds of fuel
and so transport's share of total emissions is likely
to increase.
3. This is why road transport CO 2
emissions grew by
8 per cent between 1990 and 2000 even though
average new car fuel efficiency has improved by
10 per cent since 1997. And this is why forecasts
indicate that road transport emissions will grow
by another 8 per cent between 2000 and 2010,
although the link between traffic growth and
economic growth has weakened in recent years.
4. This is the difficult backdrop against which the
Government’s decisions are made. What we need
to do is on the one hand reduce the
environmental impact of the journeys people