Rise in rail travel
GATWICK AIRPORT HAS SWITCHED its fleet of diesel vehicles to run on Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO), saving 950 tonnes of carbon emissions per year.
The airport had around 300 vehicles, including fire engines, airside operations vehicles and snow ploughs powered by diesel. These account for around 85 per cent of Gatwick’s fleet, and all will be powered by HVO until they are retired and replaced by electric vehicles. The airport said the move would reduce its Scope 1 (those directly produced/controlled by a company) vehicle emissions by 90 per cent. Gatwick stressed “an extensive trial concluded HVO had no impact on the performance of the vehicles, meaning the fire engines still have the capability to respond to call-outs anywhere on the airfield within three minutes”.
The move is part of its commitment to be net zero for Scope 1 and 2 (the latter being emissions indirectly produced when the company purchases energy) by 2030. To this end, Gatwick is investing £250+ million to replace all vehicles, gas boilers and refrigerants with low carbon alternatives, as well as investing in on-site renewable energy, including solar power. The airport said it is also working with airlines and industry partners to tackle Scope 3 emissions (those further down the supply chain) through “airspace modernisation and innovations in SAF, electric, hydrogen and hybrid aircraft”.
TRAINLINE IS ENCOURAGING people to shift to rail travel in order to meet the UK’s net zero goals for 2050. The platform’s ‘I Came By Train’ campaign revealed that a 30 per cent increase in rail travel is needed by 2035 in order to achieve the net zero goals set by the UK Climate Change Committee for 2050.
Trainline aims to build a coalition of tech, rail, policy makers, NGOs and community groups, calling on “collective action to inspire behaviour change”. This comes after research revealed 58 per cent of respondents have considered switching to train travel to reduce their carbon footprint. According to Trainline, if this cohort opted for the train on one 200-mile journey each year, that would deliver one third of the 30 per cent goal and reduce the UK’s CO2e emissions by 4.5 million metric tonnes.
Trainline CEO Jody Ford said: “When we talk about attracting 30 per cent more people to rail, that isn’t just a challenge the rail industry needs to take on, it’s a challenge for broader society.”