Sustainability Committee

Inquiry into Carbon Reduction in Wales: Carbon Reduction by Transport

Response from IAM Motoring Trust

For all enquiries and further information please contact Tim Shallcross, Head of Policy, Wales, IAM Motoring Trust. (07968 701905)

1. Yes, we believe there is no reason why the target for Wales should not be the same as for the UK as a whole.

2. Transport emissions are generally based on tailpipe emissions with appropriate multipliers for each fuel type to convert to overall CO₂ emissions. This reflects the differing net contributions made by, for example, biodiesel and mineral diesel. Although consumption emissions might be a desirable way of making people aware of the total impact of their activities, we believe that for simplicity it is more appropriate to stay with the approach used by the rest of the UK and Europe and base targets on end user emissions, or production. If consumption emissions are to be measured, this should be a separate activity, clearly differentiated from the targets to avoid confusion.

3, With extensive rural communities, distribution requirements mean higher than average mileages for residents of Wales. The hilly nature of the terrain will also increase average fuel consumption compared to the UK as a whole. While little can be done to flatten the hills, the Welsh Assembly Government can do much to encourage the uptake of lower carbon technologies for distribution throughout the country.

4. The current transport policies of the Welsh Assembly Government, send a clear message of intent to reduce carbon emissions, but seem to lack detail about actual measures that are to be introduced.

5. Insufficient information is available to us to answer this question.

6. We believe that diverting funding to the following initiatives will create the conditions for greater reductions in transport emissions than are currently being achieved.

Procurement of low carbon vehicles by Welsh Assembly Government and all public authorities in Wales.
Support for the upcoming garage code of conduct sponsored by OFT. This will encourage good standards of maintenance for the low carbon vehicles.
Funding for Energy Saving Trust’s Green Fleet Reviews and Green Fleet advice to help businesses in Wales transport cut carbon emissions.
Support for SAFED programme to improve the driving performance of professional drivers in Wales.
Continuing support for road improvement schemes which will have environmental improvements as a primary or secondary effect.

7. All of the points in answer 6 (above) have demonstrable benefits following implementation in various countries including England and Scotland.

8. We do not have sufficient information to respond to this question.

9. We believe it would be appropriate to subdivide overall targets into shares by sector. There are 2 potential ways of approaching this, one would be to base targets on existing contribution, the other would be by a realistic appraisal of the improvement potential of each sector. We would favour the latter approach and feel that targets for the transport sector in Wales should mirror those set for the transport sector for the UK as a whole. While this might pose a particular challenge for Wales, because of the conditions noted in answer 3, England Scotland and Northern Ireland will also have different challenges to face and Wales must be seen to fulfil and equal role in the campaign to reduce carbon emissions.