Low Carbon Scotland - meeting the emissions reduction targets 2010-2022: report

Sets out the policies that are already in place to cut emissions and further proposals to enable Scotland to meet the annual emissions targets from 2010 to 2022.


6. Transport

6.1 Transport emissions, including international aviation and shipping, make up just over a quarter of Scotland's total emissions, and more than two thirds of these emissions come from road transport. The next decade holds enormous potential to make significant progress into reducing road transport emissions through electric and other low carbon vehicles, and widening the choice in low carbon modes of travel available to individuals.

6.2 Significant cuts to Scotland's capital budget as a result of the UK Comprehensive Spending Review 2010 mean that new, innovative financing models will be needed to deliver such large-scale changes in infrastructure and behaviour. Scotland will also need to maximise the funding it draws from UK schemes to research and develop low carbon vehicle infrastructure and fuels. The proposals in this chapter include descriptions of potential options for implementation, while the Low Carbon Economic Strategy 88 explores the potential funding mechanisms and the benefits to the Scottish economy of investment in low carbon travel.

Trends in transport emissions

  • Transport emissions, including international aviation and shipping, were 14.5 MtCO 2e in 2008, 1.1 MtCO 2e higher than in 1990. Transport is the only sector in which emissions have grown since 1990, although emissions in 2008 were slightly lower than in 2007.
  • Within this sector, road transport emissions rose from 9.3 MtCO 2e to 10.0 MtCO 2e, and emissions from aviation more than doubled from 0.8 MtCO 2e to 1.7 MtCO 2e.
  • In contrast to the UK, Scotland's emissions targets include emissions from international aviation and shipping, meaning that the Scottish 42% target for 2020 is more stretching than a UK target of the same level.

Milestones

6.3 Milestones for transport in 2020 are:

  • a mature market for low carbon cars, resulting in average efficiencies for new cars of less than 95 gCO 2/km;
  • an electric vehicle charging infrastructure in place in Scottish cities;
  • personalised travel planning advice provided to all households;
  • effective travel plans in all workplaces with more than 30 employees; and
  • at least 10% of all journeys made by bicycle.

EU policies

6.4 Although some transport policy is devolved, EU and UK Government policies have a significant impact on emissions reductions in Scotland.

6.5 In particular, the European Commission is in the process of setting mandatory targets for the emissions-intensity of new cars and vans, which apply to all vehicle manufacturers.

  • Regulations have already been passed to reduce new car fleet average emissions to 130 gCO 2/km by 2015, with a long-term target of 95 gCO 2/km by 2020 89 .
  • The European Council and Parliament have agreed a deal on regulations to reduce emissions from new vans, under which fleet average emissions must reduce to
    175 gCO 2/km by 2017, with a long-term target of 147 gCO 2/km by 2020 90 .

6.6 Complementing these regulations, the EC's Clean Vehicles Directive 91 requires public sector bodies to include environmental costs as award criteria for procuring vehicles. This regulation is currently being transposed into Scots law, and was consulted on in July to September 2010 92 .

6.7 In addition to setting regulations requiring increases in vehicle efficiencies, under the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation 93 the EC requires a set (increasing) proportion of transport fuel to come from renewable sources - mostly biofuels. The regulation was amended in 2009 to slow targets in order to address concerns about the sustainability of biofuels production raised in the Gallagher review 94 .

6.8 Together these measures reduce emissions by 1.4 MtCO 2e compared to the baseline projection by 2020.

6.9 As well as setting regulations for land transport, the EU is responsible for the strongest policy lever for control of aviation emissions - the EU Emissions Trading System ( EU ETS). Excluding military aviation and some other specific types of flights, emissions from flights to, from and within the EU will be covered by the EU ETS from 2012 onwards. In 2012 emissions will be capped at 97% of average annual emissions from 2004 to 2006, and from 2013 to 2020 they will be capped at 95%. If air operators exceed these limits they will have to buy allowances from other participants (e.g. power stations), whose emissions are also capped, meaning that overall emissions will not rise.

Scottish policies

6.10 Current devolved action focuses on encouraging people to switch to more sustainable forms of transport; making fuel efficient driver training and advice available to drivers; preparing for the longer term shift to low carbon vehicles ( LCVs); improving rail transport; using planning policy to make development more accessible; and encouraging increased levels of cycling and walking:

  • Eco-driving advice and information from the Energy Saving Trust helps car drivers to significantly reduce fuel consumption.
  • Transport Scotland committed £4.3 million to support the procurement of low carbon vehicles and their supportive infrastructure in 2010-11. The Low Carbon Vehicle Procurement Support Scheme is providing grant funding to Community Planning Partnerships to assist the uptake of a range of low carbon vehicle technologies in the public sector fleet. This funding subsidises the difference in cost between a low carbon vehicle and its petrol or diesel equivalent, and can also be used for the purchase and installation of associated infrastructure.
  • Central Scotland is one of five projects in the UK-wide Plugged-in Places Programme, which provides match-funding for up to half the cost of installing publicly available electric vehicle charging points. This project, led by Transport Scotland, aims to create a network of 375 charging points across key commuter areas such as Edinburgh, Glasgow, Fife, Lanarkshire and Falkirk.
  • The Scottish Green Bus Fund for 2010-11 provided £4.4 million funding to bus operators for up to 100% of the price difference between a low carbon vehicle and its diesel equivalent. This will add about 50 low carbon buses to the Scottish bus fleet. In addition, payment rates for LCVs within the Bus Service Operators Grant scheme incentivise their purchase.
  • Following Scottish Government funding to establish a network of training providers, fuel efficient driving training for drivers of HGVs and freight vans is now available on a commercial basis with no Government involvement. In addition, free impartial information for the freight industry on saving fuel, developing skills, equipment and systems, operational efficiency and performance management is available under the Freight Best Practice programme.
  • An Intelligent Transport System ( ITS) Action Plan is in place to improve the efficiency of the road network. Since 2007, over £28 million has been invested on such systems. Work is underway to identify the optimum deployment of these measures on the most congested parts of the Scottish network.
  • The Scottish Government's Ferries Review, currently underway, is considering the environmental impact of Scottish ferry services. Recent actions for domestic ferries have focused on improving fuel consumption though drag reducing paint and the provision of new more efficient propellers. Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd. is working with counterparts in Ireland and Northern Ireland on a project, part EU funded, to develop the next generation of "small ferries" which, by utilising diesel-hybrid technology, could be 30% more fuel efficient than current small ferries.
  • Advice to organisations on travel planning to reduce the incidence of single occupancy car journeys and encourage increased levels of active travel and public transport use is delivered by the Energy Saving Trust and through www.chooseanotherway.com. Travel planning for schools is provided by Sustrans, while Cycling Scotland currently delivers the Cycle Friendly Employer Award.
  • The Scottish Government, COSLA and participating Local Authorities and Regional Transport Partnerships have committed £15 million to the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme. Sustainable travel projects in seven communities across Scotland are currently piloting initiatives to increase active travel and public transport use. The current programme will run until March 2011, after which it will be fully evaluated.
  • The Cycling Action Plan for Scotland, published in June 2010, sets the framework for a tenfold increase in the proportion of road journeys made by bicycle. The Scottish Government has made available a total of £17.3 million in 2010-11 to promote increased cycling.
  • By allowing members to access cars for various periods of time, car clubs break the link between car use and car ownership. Funding of £200,000 was provided to CarPlus in 2010-11 to support communities and local authorities to encourage early stage car clubs.
  • The Scottish Government operates four freight grant schemes, each with the aim of encouraging the transfer of freight from road to rail or water, where the road option is cheaper.
  • Work has started on the Edinburgh to Glasgow Rail Improvements programme, to electrify and improve the capacity, frequency and journey times of rail services between the two cities. Phase 1 improvements to Highland Main line services operating between Perth and Inverness will be introduced in December 2011. Transport Scotland is working closely with Network Rail to develop improvements between Aberdeen and Inverness. These major improvements have been Government policy for some time, and as such the emissions reductions resulting from them are included in the "business as usual" emissions projection.
  • Scottish Planning Policy influences the location, density and form of development to make access by public transport and active travel easier and reduce travel demand.

6.11 As demonstrated, the Scottish Government is currently investing in policies to reduce emissions from transport, both in existing networks and transport modes and in developing new and alternative transport options. However, in some areas a step-change is needed in devolved policy action.

Scottish proposals

6.12 The Scottish Government's proposals for significant further reduction of transport emissions are based largely on the findings of commissioned research on potential devolved policy options 95 , published in 2009 - hereafter referred to as "the Atkins study". Some of the measures in this study were also identified by the Committee on Climate Change as Scottish levers for unlocking emissions reductions. The measures have been packaged into three key groups:

  • Driving more efficiently: extension of eco-driving training/promotion for car drivers; more strictly enforcing 70 mph speed limits on trunk roads; further support for low carbon vehicle infrastructure and procurement; more efficient freight and van transport; Intelligent Transport Systems on trunk roads; and maritime transport efficiency improvements.
  • Widening travel choices: more intense delivery of travel planning for schools, households and businesses; improved cycling and walking infrastructure; encouraging the formation of more car clubs; encouraging improved, more efficient local buses and taxis; and further mode shift of freight from road to rail or water where appropriate.
  • Reducing the need to travel: the creation of mixed use "community hubs" in smaller settlements to reduce the distances people need to travel for work and other purposes.

6.13 Most of these measures would bring financial benefits greater than their costs, largely in fuel savings for individual drivers. On top of the financial benefits, most would also bring additional benefits such as improved health as a result of active travel, improved air quality, less congestion and noise pollution, fewer traffic accidents and enhanced biodiversity.

6.14 Implementation of a number of proposals (including low carbon vehicle infrastructure and procurement, Intelligent Transport Systems, more efficient local buses and more efficient, hybrid ferries) is likely to commence in 2011-12. To ensure consistency with the published draft of this Report, they remain listed as "proposals" in tables A1 and A2 in Annex B. Chapter 2 sets out a pragmatic approach to the differentiation between proposals and policies.

Driving more efficiently

Eco-driving for car drivers

6.15 The Atkins study identified a national initiative encouraging more energy efficient driving of cars as a cost-effective way of making significant emissions reductions. The CCC also identified eco-driving as a potential option. The Scottish Government is considering extending the availability of eco-driving training, including within the public sector, following further evaluation of existing provision.

6.16 Eco-driving training teaches driving techniques that lead to average fuel savings of 5-10%. The proposal in the Atkins study was to extend the small-scale awareness raising campaign and free training currently provided by the Energy Saving Trust to a level where 80% of the driving population would undertake free face-to-face training sessions in the period up to 2027, with updates every five years. As well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, eco-driving would result in a range of other benefits including reduced motoring costs and pollution, and improved road safety.

6.17 Large scale partnership working with local authorities, motoring organisations and commercial partners would be required to deliver training on this scale. As with all voluntary approaches, creative solutions would be required to maximise uptake of training.

6.18 Integration within the driving test could be the starting point of a new regulatory regime. It is currently considered within the test but driving in a contrary way does not at present result in failure. Driving licensing policy is reserved to the UK Government.

Speed limit enforcement

6.19 The most efficient driving speed for cars varies according to a number of factors but, in general, above 50 mph efficiency tends to decrease. Both the CCC and the Atkins study suggested that stricter enforcement of the existing 70 mph speed limit for cars on dual carriageways and motorways would be a relatively cost-effective way to achieve more fuel-efficient driving and reduce emissions. Cost savings to motorists would be significant. The policy would exclude HGVs, which have lower speed limits.

6.20 Enforcement at 70mph could be carried out using cameras to record average speed along certain intervals of road. However, significant issues in relation to the practicality of enforcement and their implications for costs remain to be resolved.

Low carbon vehicles and infrastructure

6.21 Although the move to lower carbon vehicles will be largely driven by EU legislation, the Scottish Government will build on the lessons already learned to further support the pace of uptake of low carbon vehicles and provision of associated infrastructure in Scotland. This will be achieved by:

  • promoting the use of Scottish sustainable biofuels for Scottish business to reduce emissions from heavy / specialist public sector vehicles through the Biofuels Business Programme. For example, this approach has recently led to the creation of bio-ethanol from whisky residues, which is currently awaiting patent approval;
  • extending support for the existing public sector procurement programme for LCVs. Through the procurement and efficient driving of LCVs public sector transport emissions can be reduced significantly. The procurement programme is planned to continue past 2010-11 and will also support the introduction of driver management instrumentation to improve public sector driver behaviour;
  • development of essential infrastructure in Scotland to create a network of about 400 electric charging points across the central belt of Scotland for use by drivers of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Further work with local authorities will be undertaken to join up other parts of Scotland;
  • promoting UK grants of up to £5,000 to private motorists purchasing low carbon cars and vans; and
  • supporting further research, development and trials of hydrogen technology to power road vehicles, utilising existing infrastructure and relationships with industry and academia to identify performance gaps and deliver solutions.

6.22 The Scottish Government will publish a Low Carbon Vehicle Action Plan later in 2011.

Freight efficiencies

6.23 The Government proposes a number of measures aimed at improving freight efficiency through technological, purchasing and operational changes in the fleets of freight vans and HGVs. Fuel efficient driving training is currently commercially available for drivers of HGVs and freight van drivers. EU legislation 96 requires HGV drivers to undergo a minimum of five days training within a five year period to retain their Certificates of Professional Competence. Fuel efficient driving training is an accredited course which can count towards meeting that requirement. Further options are:

  • to encourage and/or incentivise collaborative initiatives with a target of reducing empty running and partial-load running; and
  • to increase road freight vehicle capacity to reduce overall number of journeys.

6.24 Except where a mandatory approach is suggested, it is envisaged that these measures would rely on voluntary uptake by the freight industry. They would therefore need to be supported by targeted communication, whereby freight operators would be offered a service and could use those aspects of it that were of interest to them.

Van efficiencies

6.25 Emissions from the van fleet could be reduced by improving the efficiency of van usage, through technological, purchasing and operational changes. The Scottish Government will:

  • Encourage van users to make use of advisory programmes offering free advice and information on fuel saving techniques - such as the Van Best Practice programme; and
  • Encourage van drivers to participate in eco-driver training programmes.

Intelligent Transport Systems

6.26 Intelligent Transport Systems ( ITS) is the collective term for the technology based 'tools' available to make the most efficient use of the trunk road network by monitoring conditions, controlling traffic where necessary and informing motorists of conditions. ITS tools could include variable speed limits, variable message signs, ramp metering and average speed enforcement as appropriate, and targeted use of the hard shoulder as an additional 'managed lane' for priority vehicles.

6.27 As outlined in Project 9 of the Strategic Transport Projects Review ( STPR) 97 , the use of ITS to actively manage the most congested parts of Scotland's trunk road network will improve safety, journey time reliability and in some cases result in journey time savings. Smoother traffic flows can also result in a reduction in emissions per vehicle and reduced fuel consumption.

6.28 The Managed Motorway concept in England (M42, M6) is widely used and has been shown to reduce congestion and reliably improve journey time. The Scottish Government is committed to delivering enhanced ITS, principally Managed Motorways, on the trunk road and motorway network in Central Scotland, as prioritised in the STPR.

Maritime transport

6.29 The Scottish Government is working with operators and the port sector, particularly those receiving public support, to build on their current activities relating to the environmental impact of maritime transport. This includes emissions reduction from improved vessel design, hybrid diesel-electric engines and use of other alternative fuels, and improved fleet management. Improvements to the efficiency of the subsidised fleet as a whole are dependent upon the pace of vessel replacement. The Government is considering the scope for more efficient powering of vessels in port through connection to shore-side power sources and the use of port sites for renewable power generation. The Government also supports efforts for an international agreement on carbon emissions from shipping.

Wider transport choices

Travel planning

6.30 Travel planning delivers targeted information direct to travellers to help them make sustainable travel choices, through schools, workplaces or to households. It does this by raising awareness of cycling, walking or public transport, car sharing alternatives, and flexible and home working options, and discussing how to overcome actual or perceived barriers to their use. A major increase in the provision of travel planning advice to organisations (workplaces, schools) and amongst households over the next ten years could have a significant impact on Scottish emissions. Department for Transport results from pilots in England published in February 2010 98 showed a reduction in car journeys per person of 9%. The Scottish Government's ambition is to achieve:

  • personalised travel planning advice to all households in Scotland (each contacted once) by 2022, bringing reductions in non-work or
    -school escort trips; and
  • all workplaces with more than 30 employees to have an effective travel plan by 2022, bringing reductions in commuter trips by single occupant car.

6.31 The full extent of the benefits that travel planning could offer can only be achieved if implemented alongside measures that improve infrastructure for cycling and walking, improve public transport service frequency and information provision, provide support and training for new cyclists, and 'lock in' reductions in motor traffic on local roads through speed controls or demand management measures. Transport Scotland will use the lessons learned from the Smarter Choices Smarter Places demonstration programme to work with COSLA, Regional Transport Partnerships and local authorities to consider how best to deliver travel planning after 2010-11.

Cycling and walking infrastructure

6.32 The Cycling Action Plan for Scotland sets the framework for a tenfold increase in the proportion of journeys made by bicycle. This proposal is to increase the proportion of journeys made by active travel to 20% by 2020 through the provision of infrastructure of a level and quality of that found in e.g. Sweden, Germany and Belgium. Achieving this vision will require a major reallocation of road space to cycles, and will require constructive engagement with drivers. Improved facilities are likely to be welcomed by current and potential cyclists as well as those who benefit from quieter and safer streets with less congestion.

6.33 The primary delivery agencies for this policy would be local authorities and active travel stakeholders who currently receive funding through Cycling, Walking and Safer Streets grant and the Sustainable and Active Travel budget administered by the Sustainable Transport Team at Transport Scotland.

6.34 This proposal also includes measures to encourage more people to walk shorter journeys more often by creating places for people through the implementation of Designing Streets. Options include improvements to the quality of the walking environment and associated infrastructure; the creation of more 'Home Zone' style communities and areas of shared space offering safer and more communal use of residential streetscapes; more 20 mph zones in conurbations of over 25,000 population; and intensification of the Safe Routes to Schools programme. Transport Scotland would continue to enable behavioural change and improve information about the active travel environment, drawing on lessons learned in the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places Programme. This would support improved health, social inclusion, road safety and the economies of our local communities.

Car clubs

6.35 Car clubs offer simple and cost-effective access to a hired car for personal or business use, replacing the need to own a vehicle. The cars are available locally, maintained by the club, vehicles are replaced regularly, and car club users can book in advance and use any vehicle within the same scheme. Car clubs could be used to accelerate the introduction of electric vehicles if these were purchased preferentially by the clubs, and if charging points were installed at car club parking spaces.

6.36 Car clubs are potentially viable in towns with a population greater than 25,000, although start-up funding may be necessary to take them to a point of viability. It is envisaged that in larger urban areas schemes would be provided by the private sector, with subsidy required in smaller towns.

6.37 Provision would vary from place to place, and would depend on local authorities for provision of parking spaces. Involvement with community groups and co-operatives may be required to establish up rural car clubs. A range of options are under consideration to ensure best value for tax payers and to put car clubs on a financially sustainable footing over the long term without ongoing reliance on public finance.

Buses and taxis

6.38 The Scottish Government has been looking at options for improving public transport services further in order to encourage modal shift from car to bus, as well as reducing emissions from the current services. Options include:

  • providing funding for pilot schemes for different technologies in various geographical locations. This would require reallocation of existing Bus Services Operators Grant to give incentives to operators to run low carbon buses;
  • encouraging the uptake of LCVs through the continuation of the LCV incentive within the Bus Service Operators Grant scheme;
  • working with the bus operators through the Confederation of Public Transport and the Greener Journeys programme to reduce the number of car journeys taken by the public and to encourage increased bus patronage;
  • encouraging travel by public transport through innovative travel exchange points, information provision, and integrated travel; and
  • developing an emissions strategy to improve further the fuel efficiency of the taxi/private hire cars in Scotland.

Freight modal shift

6.39 The Scottish Government will investigate options for encouraging further the transportation of freight by less emissions-intensive modes, such as rail or water. These may include:

  • financial incentives to encourage modal shift, such as a mode shift grant for companies to transfer freight from road to rail or water;
  • development of load consolidation centres aimed at reducing the number of lorry movements required at a local level, ensuring optimum use of fleet;
  • use of the planning system to allocate sites for business with heavy freight needs at locations that enable modal choice;
  • direct investment by public sector in development of multi-modal hubs at key locations identified through STPR.

6.40 As most of these measures depend on the cooperation of other bodies in both the public and commercial sectors, more work will be undertaken to assess the feasibility of these options.

Reducing the need for travel

Community hubs

6.41 In addition to travel planning advice to employing organisations on the benefits of flexible and home working in reducing the need to travel, the Scottish Government will undertake further analysis of options for introduction of shared facilities in settlements of population less than 10,000 (of which Scotland has over 100). Equipped for remote working, with ICT and remote office facilities (including video-conferencing suites), such facilities could remove a key reason for travel and reduce travel costs. Additionally, these "community hubs" could offer an additional range of benefits such as health, education, shopping delivery, post office and other financial services, and storage for ecommerce deliveries.

6.42 The most likely delivery bodies for community hubs are local authorities or local economic development organisations, acting through project management consultancies if appropriate.

Overall abatement from Transport policies and proposals

6.43 A very ambitious implementation of all the proposals set out above could result in an abatement in 2020 of 1.1 MtCO 2e, giving a total abatement of 2.5 MtCO 2e (including estimated abatement from EU policies) from all policies and proposals in the Transport sector.

Transport emissions would be 11.6 MtCO 2e in 2020, 13% lower than in 1990.

Other measures

6.44 The Scottish Government is pressing the UK Government for legislative powers to allow the Scottish Government to determine the level of the national speed limit in Scotland. The Atkins study and the CCC highlighted the role of speed limits in achieving more fuel-efficient driving and in reducing emissions.

Delivery of Transport policies

6.45 Detailed abatement potential is presented line-by-line in Table 10, but in practice there is interdependence between measures and savings. The most significant example is travel planning, the effectiveness of which is dependent on improved public transport, cycling and walking infrastructure, and demand management measures.

6.46 None of the measures have been rolled out at this level of intensity previously and, given this lack of precedence, there remains significant uncertainty over both the exact costs, abatement potential, and mode of delivery.

6.47 In addition, the proposals described above will depend on other public and private sector bodies for their delivery, especially local authorities. The Scottish Government will work with COSLA, local authorities and other local partners to ensure measures are delivered consistently, Scotland-wide.

Supporting and enabling measures

High speed rail

6.48 Through fast journey times, the rail network provides a reliable and attractive alternative to other modes of transport as well as the potential for reduced emissions. Successive reports show that the economic and environmental case for high speed rail in the UK is stronger when Scotland is considered as an integral part of the system. A three hour journey time between Scotland and London would create modal shift from air, potentially capturing 67% of the overall travel market between Scotland and London (Scottish Strategic Business Case, Transport Scotland). Transport Scotland will continue to work with High Speed 2, the company responsible for planning of high speed rail, as it develops strategic route options for high speed rail to Scotland. Scottish Ministers are lobbying for Scotland to be included in the first wave of implementation of this project.

6.49 Transport Scotland has developed a tool quantifying the changes in emissions associated with certain rail projects to help the decision-making process.

Supportive planning process

6.50 The location and design of new development has a strong influence on the way people travel. The Scottish Government's National Planning Framework 99 describes the strategy for long-term spatial development to support the transition to a low carbon economy, including the promotion of higher densities and mixed use development close to public transport nodes in urban areas.

6.51 Scottish Planning Policy 100 specifies that opportunities for personal travel should be prioritised in the following order - walking, cycling, public transport, car and other motorised vehicles. Buildings and facilities should be accessible on foot and by cycle. Improvements to active transport networks, such as paths and cycle routes, should make these more attractive and safer for pedestrians and cyclists, including people with mobility difficulties, and thereby support more sustainable travel choices.

6.52 The availability of parking can have an important influence in reducing reliance on the car. Planning authorities should apply best practice parking standards to on-site parking at new developments to encourage modal shift. Parking management policies should be supported by measures to promote the availability of high quality public transport services. Authorities should also consider promoting Park and Ride schemes on commuter routes. Appropriate car and cycle parking should be provided at rail stations to encourage onward travel by rail. The Scottish Government is working closely with planning authorities to ensure that their statutory duty to contribute to the reduction of emissions is fully reflected in development plan policies.

Costs and benefits

6.53 The total implementation and operating costs for the three main transport packages (driving more efficiently, wider transport choices and reducing the need to travel) would be £3.9 billion from 2011-2022.

6.54 A significant proportion of the up-front funding required to implement these policies is likely to fall to the public sector. However, most of these measures, such as eco-driving and speed management, would bring financial benefits greater than their costs, largely in fuel savings for individual drivers. It may be possible to design policies in a way that aligns the costs and benefits more closely, so that the beneficiaries of fuel savings meet at least some of the costs of the policy - for example, eco-driving training and car clubs could be provided commercially at a cost far less than the money they would save their customers.

6.55 On top of the financial benefits, most of these measures, especially those that encourage alternatives to car use, would bring additional benefits. These would include improved health as a result of active travel, improved air quality, less congestion and noise pollution, fewer traffic accidents and enhanced biodiversity. While modal shift would cause some journey times to increase, the introduction of community hubs could reduce time spent travelling for many people. The Scottish Government will develop analysis of these non-financial impacts as policies and proposals are developed further.

6.56 As noted, the majority of these measures have not been rolled out at this level of intensity previously. Consequently, there remains significant uncertainty over both the exact costs and abatement potential.

6.57 The significant intensity and scope of the measures, which would involve scaling-up small pilot projects to a national scale, requires new business models and a pool of skilled labour that currently may not be available, for example in delivering eco-driving training to drivers in private households. The Low Carbon Economy Strategy sets out some of the challenges in the transport sector as well as the opportunities and the actions needed to exploit them.

Need for greater powers

6.58 The majority of transport functions are already devolved to the Scottish Parliament. However, as noted in our Climate Change Delivery Plan, there are some areas where legislative powers and fiscal autonomy could contribute to meeting Scotland's statutory climate change targets. These include:

  • Legislative powers to allow the Scottish Government to allow the Scottish Government to determine the level of the national speed limit in Scotland; and
  • Fiscal autonomy to tailor fuel and vehicle excise duties to better take account of Scottish circumstances which could contribute to emissions reductions; and
  • Further legislative powers, in particular increased fiscal powers, that would enable the faster delivery of high speed rail in Scotland.

Table 9: Policies for reducing emissions from Transport

Policy package and description

EU, UK or Scottish policy?

Expected abatement (ktCO 2e) in 2020

Further information available from

EU Mandatory Vehicle Emissions Targets

746

EU regulations on CO 2 from new cars - EC/443/2009
Obligation on manufacturers to reduce new car fleet average emissions to 95 gCO 2/km by 2020.

EU

European Commission website:

http://ec.europa.eu/clima/
policies/transport/vehicles/cars_en.htm

EU regulations on CO 2 from new vans
Obligation on manufacturers to reduce new van fleet average emissions to 135 gCO 2/km by 2020.

EU

European Commission website:

http://ec.europa.eu/clima/
policies/transport/vehicles/vans_en.htm

EU cleaner vehicles directive - 2009/33/ EC
Requirement for public sector bodies to include environmental costs as award criteria for procuring vehicles - to be transposed into Scots law.

EU

European Commission website:

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/
urban/vehicles/directive/directive_en.htm

Biofuels

640

Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation
Regulation requiring set proportion of fuel to come from renewable sources.

EU

Renewable Fuels Agency website:

http://www.renewablefuelsagency.gov.uk/
aboutthertfo

TOTAL ABATEMENT FROM TRANSPORT POLICIES

1,386

Table 10: Proposals for reducing emissions from Transport

Maximum abatement potential (ktCO 2e) in 2020

Total financial cost

(2011 - 22, £m, cash terms)

Cost-effective-ness (£/tCO 2e abated)

Earliest start date

Options for implementation

Driving more efficiently

Eco-driving

Eco-driving delivers driving techniques leading to average fuel savings of 5-10%. Current activity has been limited to a small-scale awareness raising campaign including free training.

This proprosal is to encourage market demand for eco-driving training from car drivers and its delivery.

80

42

-84

2012

Large scale partnership working with local authorities, motoring organisations and commercial partners would be required to deliver training on this scale.

Speed limits

Stricter enforcement of the existing 70 mph limit on only dual carriageways and motorways. The policy would exclude HGVs which are currently speed limited at 60mph on motorways, 50mph on unrestricted dual carriageways and 40mph on single carriageway roads.

23

48

-119

2013

Significant issues in relation to the practicality of enforcement, resource implications for the police and court service, and associated deliverability of the benefits. The cost-effectiveness figure opposite excludes fuel savings to motorists, which are expected to be significant.

Low carbon vehicles and infrastructure

Transport Scotland has committed £4.3m to support the procurement of low carbon vehicles and their supportive infrastructure in
2010-11 and £4.4m to the Scottish Green Bus Fund in 2010-11. This proposal involves additional measures to increase early uptake of low carbon vehicles in both the public and private sectors, and supporting infrastructure provision.

70

168

48

2011

Freight efficiencies

Measures aimed at improving freight efficiency through technological, purchasing and operational changes in the fleets of freight vans and HGVs.

109

55

-89

2011

Van efficiencies

Policies aimed at reducing emissions by improving the efficiency of van usage, through technological, purchasing and operational changes.

19

9

-89

2011

Intelligent Transport Systems

An Intelligent Transport System ( ITS) Action Plan is in place and, since 2007, over £28m has been invested. The proposal is to use ITS to reduce the volume or increase the efficiency of traffic flows on the trunk road network.

10

249

1,211

2011

Variable speed limits, variable message signs, ramp metering and average speed enforcement as appropriate and targeted use of the hard shoulder as an additional 'managed lane' for priority vehicles.

Maritime

In our domestic ferry services, recent short-term actions have focused on improving fuel consumption though drag reducing paint and the provision of new more efficient propellers. We will work with domestic ferry operators to build on the environmental impact of maritime transport to achieve emissions reductions of up to 20%.

50

24

-76

2011

Widening transport choices

Travel planning

Building on the lessons learned from existing travel planning activity, provision of a major increase in existing policy of advice and information on sustainable transport options as alternative to single-occupancy car journeys, tailored to individual circumstances.

225

127

-91

2012

The proposal envisages personalised travel planning advice to all households in Scotland by 2022; workplace travel plans to reduce the number of commute trips by single-occupant car; and schools travel plans to reduce car use for escort trips.

Cycling and walking infrastructure

The Cycling Action Plan for Scotland published in June 2010 sets the framework for a tenfold increase in the proportion of journeys made by bicycle. This proposal also includes options to encourage people to walk shorter journeys more often. The proposal seeks to increase the proportion of journeys by active travel to 20%.

94

1,320

345

2012

Delivery of the policy is largely dependent on local authorities and partnerships to appropriately reallocate road space.

Car clubs

Funding has been made available to 2010-11 to encourage the formation of car clubs across Scotland. This proposal is to create car clubs in towns with populations less than 25,000 to reduce the need for car ownership.

44

73

3

2012

Dependent on local authorities for provision of parking spaces and potentially community groups/co-ops for running rural car clubs.

Bus and taxis

Extension of the Green Bus Fund to encourage operators and local authorities to invest in new low carbon vehicle technology. Work with the bus operators through CPT and the Greener Journeys programme to encourage increased bus patronage. Funding for local authorities to encourage travel by public transport through innovative travel exchange points, information provision, and integrated travel.

An emissions strategy designed to further improve the quality of the taxi/private hire cars in Scotland.

201

1,614

305

2011

Delivery of the policy is dependent on cooperation and match funding from other bodies.

Freight modal shift

Further incentives to encourage modal shift of freight to rail or water where appropriate.

102

180

70

2011

Dependent on cooperation of other bodies.

Reducing the need for travel

Community hubs

In addition to travel planning advice, this proposal aims to further reduce the need to travel through the provision of shared remote working facilities in settlements with populations less than 10,000.

66

10

-107

2012

Lack of an obvious agency to implement the measure.

TOTAL ABATEMENT FROM TRANSPORT PROPOSALS

1,093

3,918

Table 11: Supporting and enabling measures for reducing emissions from Transport

Policy package and description

EU, UK or Scottish policy?

Policy or proposal?

Further information available from

Rail

Transport Scotland Carbon Management System

Tool quantifying emissions associated with various rail projects, to aid decision-making process

Scottish

Policy

Transport Scotland website:

http://www.transportscotland.gov.uk/
about-us/corporate-reports/
j10967-00.htm

Planning

National Planning Framework 2

Strategy for long-term spatial development, supporting the transition to a low carbon economy.

Scottish

Policy

Scottish Government website:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/
Topics/Built-Environment/
planning/National-Planning-Policy/npf/

Scottish Planning Policy

Scottish Planning Policy aims to influence the location, density and form of new development to make access by public transport and active travel easier and reduce travel demand.

Scottish

Policy

Scottish Government website:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/
Topics/Built-Environment/
planning/National-Planning-Policy/newSPP

Designing Places

Policy statement setting out the Scottish Government's expectations of the planning system to deliver high standards of design in development for rural and urban areas, with a focus on sustainability.

Scottish

Policy

as above

Designing Streets

Policy statement for street design changing the emphasis of guidance on street design towards place-making and away from a system focused upon the dominance of motor vehicles.

Practical examples are being promoted through the Scottish Sustainable Communities Initiative, which consists of 11 exemplars of better quality development, and the Polnoon masterplan, which aims to apply the advice in Designing Places and other advice notes.

Scottish

Policy

as above

Contact

Email: climate.change@gov.scot

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