Consumption and the environment (SOER2010) - European ...

Thematic assessment | Consumption and the environment
information‐based instruments like information on fuel
consumption and CO 2
emissions of new cars, voluntary
agreements with industry including voluntary targets
on fuel efficiency and education such as eco‐driving
campaigns (ETC/SCP, 2009 and Böhler et al., 2009).
These measures are most effective when applied in
an appropriate mix, complementing each other and
targeting relevant actors, rather than used on their own.
Furthermore, as the drivers of demand for transport
are often outside the transport policy area, for example
in spatial patterns, urban design, and production and
distribution systems, transport policy must be integrated
with other policies, particularly within urban and regional
planning and health planning (EEA, 2007).
Some economic instruments used to discourage car use
are included in Box 6.1. However, if such instruments are
to be effective, they must be combined with investment
in viable alternatives such as effective public transport
systems and bicycle lanes, thereby making sustainable
alternatives attractive. Bicycle action plans such as those
implemented in Denmark and Germany (TRM, 2007 and
BMVBS, 2002) and city‐bike systems and investments
in cycling infrastructure such as the United Kingdom's
Cycling City, Cycling Town could be used to promote
cycling in place of motorised transport.
Integrating sustainable mobility concepts into urban
planning is also crucial. For example, the EC's 2009
Urban Mobility Action Plan (EC, 2009b) develops
measures identified in the European Green Paper
on Urban Transport (EC, 2007). It highlights the
responsibility of local, regional and national authorities
in developing urban mobility policies that have the
promotion of sustainable transport at their core.
One theme in the plan, The optimisation of urban
mobility, describes the importance of affordable and
family‐friendly public transport solutions to promote
reduced car‐dependence.
A study carried out for the European Commission
concludes that GHG emissions from transport in the
EU could be reduced by 89 % by 2050 compared with
1990 levels if all the options currently available are
embraced with bold actions. To achieve such reductions,
non‐technical measures, including better spatial planning
and use of economic instruments to internalise the
externalities of transport as well as removal of harmful
subsidies, etc. are essential (EC, 2010).
Box 6.1 Use of economic instruments in the area of transport
Pricing of passenger transport can focus on different issues: ownership and size of cars (vehicle tax), fuel consumption
(energy tax or green taxes), and the use of transport infrastructure (road‐pricing, congestion charging, parking fees)
(Böhler et al., 2009).
Feebate systems that combine a fee and a rebate have been introduced in several EU Member States. Examples
include the French Bonus‐Malus scheme and the Danish differentiated registration levy. These systems introduce
CO 2
emission rates in the registration of cars combining elements of both a fee and a rebate thus providing a price
incentive for cars with lower CO 2
emissions. A recent study (JRC/IPTS, 2009) found that the feebate instrument could
benefit both the environment and the economy.
Green taxes on fuel consumption have already been implemented in several European countries either as fuel taxes or
as carbon taxes. In the United Kingdom and Germany the environmental benefits included reductions in fuel use and
emissions, and vehicle kilometres were found to be below expectations (Green Fiscal Commission, 2009; UBA, 2005).
Congestion charges, in combination with improved public transport, have proved to be very effective in reducing
impacts, but to date have had only very limited application. The London congestion charge introduced in 2003 has led
to a reduction in traffic by 18 %, which accounts for 150 000 tonnes of CO 2
‐reduction per year (Siemens AG, 2009).
Similarly, the Stockholm congestion charge, introduced in 2006, resulted in a 25 % reduction in traffic during its
6‐month trial period (Eliasson, 2007; Pike, 2010). A study for Switzerland showed that a nationwide kilometre‐based
charge could reduce traffic by 4–7 % (ARE, 2007).
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The European environment | State and outlook 2010