Climate Jury Session Seven

The seventh session of the Preston People's Climate Jury covered transport. 

Low Carbon Transport Plans in Lancashire

Chris Hadfield, Sustainable Travel Manager, Lancashire County Council

Transport is the largest contributor to the UK's carbon emissions, accounting for between a quarter and a third of the total.

Lancashire County Council is the lead authority for transport in the county, including in Preston. Its work is informed by many plans and strategies including the:

• Local Transport Plan
• Five Highways and Transport Masterplans
• Highways and Transport Strategy
• Bus Service Improvement Plan to encourage more people to use buses.

With respect to active travel and decarbonisation, there is a Highways Decarbonisation Strategy; an Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy to improve access to charging points; a Cycling and Walking Strategy, which is underpinned by Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans; and an Environment and Climate Strategy.

There are targets to double the number of people cycling by 2028 and increase the number of people walking by 10%. This will be supported by building a network of cycle infrastructure for which plans have just been developed; making streets safer, greener and healthier; and by promoting cycling through training and other events.

There are targets for improving the service by reducing bus journey times by 10%; achieving 90% of services on time; and increasing the number of passengers by 10%.

Schemes to deliver this include bus priority measures; multi-operator ticketing and simpler fares; and real time passenger information.

For electric vehicles, the target is to have over 6,500 public charging points across Lancashire by 2030. Key to delivering this is engaging with owners of public and private car parks to decide where to place chargers.

Approaches to achieving a low carbon transport system

Ben Hawley, Consultant, Urban Foresight

Cars account for 75% of carbon emissions due to transport.

Electrifying cars will remove the greenhouse gases and improve air quality. However the solution to reducing GHG from car use doesn't just lie in electrification but should focus first on avoiding transport altogether. This could be achieved through virtual rather than in-life interactions or working from home rather than commuting.

Carbon emissions can also be reduced by encouraging more active travel and use of public transport to shift people out of cars; and finally, though improving transport technologies to reduce carbon emissions when people do make car journeys.

To encourage electric vehicle (EV) adoption, the government is investing in extending the EV charging infrastructure. Currently about 1 in 30 people in the UK own an electric vehicle, but owners tend to be wealthier men who have their own driveway, so this is creating an issue about equal access to EVs.

In Preston about 40% of houses don't have a driveway and so can't charge an EV. One way to address this is to co-locate chargers at a hub, and provide plenty of public chargers, which will also reduce 'range anxiety'.

A city which is leading the transition to low carbon transport is Copenhagen which will achieve net zero carbon emissions from transport in 2025.

Three out of four trips are on foot, bike or public transport. All cars must be electric; most vans use biogas, and all the council's vehicles are electric vehicles; green taxis and car sharing are promoted; there is an app to connect transport types across the city; and green spaces along streets have replaced parking spaces to encourage walking and reduce car use.

Thomas Calderbank, Preston Bus

Preston Bus has been operating a public transport service in Preston for over 120 years, including electric trams many years ago.

Today it operates 90 buses and employs 200 people, including 170 drivers, and offers 12 local bus services across a comprehensive network. Services operate seven days a week, for at least 12 hours a day. Preston Bus also operates two Park and Ride services in the city.

Preston Bus is working on the Bus Service Improvement Plan for Lancashire with Lancashire County Council (LCC), which, as the Highways Authority, is responsible for all public bus services in the county. Other bus operators and Preston City Council are also working in partnership with LCC to take the plan forward.

Preston Bus believes that bus services are critical to decarbonisation. By getting more people out of their cars and on to buses, emissions will reduce. Preston Bus is therefore committed to offering an attractive service by employing well trained drivers, delivering a reliable service and offering networks that meet demand at reasonable prices. As the operator attracts more customers, there will be greater opportunity to expand the network.

Preston Bus is committed to decarbonising its own fleet and aims to be fully electric in 15 years' time. Currently all vehicles are either diesel or hybrid, but the operator has committed to purchasing only electric vehicles in future. To operate the buses Preston Bus will invest in electric charging infrastructure at their depot which, though it has a significant capital cost, will reduce the company's operating costs.

Preston Bus is committed to the decarbonisation of the city and will build on the partnerships it already has in Preston to make further progress.