Locomotive Emissions Monitoring Program - Railway Association of ...

2.3.1
Freight Operations
Fuel consumption in 2008 for all freight train, yard switching and work train operations was 2,077.96 million litres,
a drop of 2.7 per cent from the 2,134.92 million L consumed in 2007 but 6.1 per cent over the 1990 level of
1,957.96 million L. The trend since 1990 in overall freight operations fuel consumption is shown in Figure 8.
Figure 8
Freight Operations Fuel Consumption
Litres (million)
2500
2,500
6.1 per cent increase over 1990
2000
2,000
1500
1,500 1990 91 92 93 94 1995 96 97 98 99 2000 01 02 03 04 2005 06 07 08
A measure of freight traffic fuel efficiency is the amount of fuel consumed per 1,000 RTK. As shown in Figure 9, this
value for freight traffic in 2008 was 6.16 L per 1,000 RTK compared to 5.90 L per 1,000 RTK in 2007. It has decreased
from 7.83 L per 1,000 RTK in 1990.
As a percentage, freight traffic fuel consumption per 1,000 RTK in 2008 was 4.3 per cent above the 2007 level.
This reversal in trend from previous years was due to the economic downturn that came into effect in 2008. However,
the 2008 level was still 21.3 per cent lower than in that of 1990 which shows the ability of the Canadian freight
railways to accommodate traffic growth while reducing fuel consumption per unit of work.
Figure 9
Freight Fuel Consumption per 1,000 RTK
Litres
10.0
10.00
21.3 per cent reduction since 1990
7.5
7.50
5.0
5.00 1990 91 92 93 94 1995 96 97 98 99 2000 01 02 03 04 2005 06 07 08
This improved fuel efficiency by Canadian freight railways has been achieved primarily by replacing older locomotives
with modern fuel-efficient EPA compliant locomotives. As well, operating practices that reduce fuel consumption
are being focused upon and evaluated. Section 7 of this report discusses the fuel consumption reduction initiatives
implemented or under examination in 2008.
Table 3 shows the freight operations fuel consumption by service type for 2008 compared to years 2003 through
2007. Of the total diesel fuel consumed in freight operations in 2008, Class I freight trains accounted for 91.6 per
cent, Regional and Short Lines 5.4 per cent and Yard Switching and Work Train 3.0 per cent. Of note from Table 2 and
Table 3 data, due to operational changes resulting in reduced switching activities, the percentage consumed by Yard
Switching and Work Train operations of total freight train operations has been reducing steadily
9 LEM 2008