EAST MIDLANDS How to tackle emissions in rural areas
Cities and short car trips have been at the centre of many transport policies to tackle emissions – but a Midlands researcher claims rural areas and longer vehicle journeys are arguably a bigger problem. Simon Statham (pictured), chief technical
officer at transport body Midlands Connect, urged policymakers to shift their focus if the transport industry is to be successfully decarbonised – while he said a stronger carbon reduction plan will be required for HGVs.
‘A lot of the solutions being used in cities to tackle emissions won’t be as effective in rural areas’
He presented research at the Decarbonisation webinar, hosted by Midlands Connect in February as part of its strategy refresh consultation, which showed emissions were twice as high on average per person in rural authorities than in urban areas across the Midlands. Simon said: “In transport planning, there’s a lot
of focus on the emissions produced by cities and how they’ll be part of the decarbonisation agenda. Our evidence suggests cities are not where the problem lies as carbon is being emitted in rural areas at a far higher rate than cities. “However, a lot of the solutions being used in
cities to tackle emissions won’t be as effective in rural areas.”
The Midlands Connect research showed just
over half of transport emissions come from cars, while HGVs and vans combined account for 40%, and public transport and rail freight are responsible for the remainder. Broken down further, just 26% of car
emissions are from trips of less than five miles – despite this type of journey being targeted by local authorities for converting people into walking or cycling. Simon said: “This shows there’s an awful lot of
trips happening that are much longer than five miles so while cycling is going to be part of sustainability policies, there’s a question mark over how much it’s going to affect the final result.” Meanwhile, rural authorities comprise 58% of
the Midlands population, yet 73% of all road- based transport emissions are generated within their boundaries.
Simon points out
this is due to large county populations – Nottinghamshire has almost the same number as people as Birmingham, for example – the necessity for people to travel longer distances to get to places, and the presence of motorways and major A-roads passing through counties. “But this shows we shouldn’t just focus on
cities when it comes to transport decarbonisation strategies,” he added. HGV emissions are also higher proportionally
in the Midlands – accounting for 30% of all emissions in the region, compared to 17% nationally. This is largely because a fifth of the UK’s road network is in the Midlands, while 20% of the region’s economy is in manufacturing and logistics – higher than the 13% national average. No clear pathway to decarbonising HGV fleets has yet emerged.
SUSTAINABLE
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