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Delivering a net zero ready rail system John Downer, Rail Market Director at Jacobs looks at the pivotal role that the UK rail industry can play as we prepare to deliver a net zero ready transport system
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n 2018, greenhouse gas emissions from rail (passenger and freight) made up just 1.4 per cent of the UK’s domestic transport emissions, but rail made up ten per cent of all passenger miles travelled. Shifting an extra four per cent of those passenger movements and four per cent of freight movements onto rail from other modes would save more carbon than the rail sector’s current total emissions, as the Railway Industry Association recently reported in its Why Rail Electrification report. Rail has embraced its part in meeting the UK’s 2050 net zero target, e.g., removing diesel powered trains by 2040. But if you see this through the passenger lens – how much do passengers truly understand the carbon impact of their journey choices? The far bigger prize here is that four per cent+ modal shift, but we must electrify rail before road transport is significantly electrified and maintain rail’s position as a more sustainable (less particulates, lower material use per kilometre travelled), passenger focused (comfortable, less congestion stress) and efficient mode of transport. With the range of solutions in circulation that can create a net zero ready rail system, the focus must move to ‘enabling decarbonised delivery’ rapidly to maximise the opportunities. Let’s explore the challenges underlying a few of these questions.
We think there are seven pertinent questions that are central to thinking why and how to enable decarbonised delivery: 1. How can we decarbonise the railway without compromising passenger experience? 2. How can we minimise disruption to services? 3. How can we link rail into existing and new modes of transport as part of a system wide approach to transport decarbonisation? 4. How do we make decisions in the short term that will produce the best outcomes for a net zero world? 5. How do we use rail to improve air quality, especially in stations that are within air quality management zones? 6. How do we reduce noise pollution from rail, especially freight? 7. How do we design, create and deploy railway infrastructure that is ready for the climate of the future whilst still operating safely and comfortably?
Putting passengers first and supporting connections I believe we can increase passenger numbers by enhancing their experience and helping them understand the carbon impact of their journey choices. Electrification brings schedule benefits and more trains of better quality. We need low carbon journey planning apps that partner the train with active travel/bus/electric vehicle-enabled ‘last mile’ journeys to offer and inform passengers ways of making end-to-end low carbon journeys. On a ‘putting passengers first’ review for the Ely Area Capacity Enhancement scheme, our insights identified an additional yearly net carbon saving based on rail freight versus road. Multiplied over a five-year period (noting the benefits will keep on accruing over decades), this will decarbonise the scheme by 113,000 tonnes of carbon by removing 212,000 lorries from the road, along with community benefits from traffic reduction (even when HGVs are no longer diesel powered from 2040). Rail Professional
