Written evidence submitted by Green Alliance (SRI0021)

About Green Alliance

Green Alliance is an independent think tank and charity focused on ambitious leadership for the environment. Our work crosses climate, the natural environment and resource use. Since 1979, we have been working with the most influential leaders in business, NGOs and politics to accelerate political action and create transformative policy for a green and prosperous UK.

Summary

This submission provides evidence to address questions surrounding the issues of decarbonisation, levelling up, productivity and growth.

Transport is the UK’s largest emitting sector, accounting for 31 per cent of carbon emissions in 2018. Total emissions from surface transport in 2019 were 113 MtCO2e, comprising 22 per cent of total UK GHG emissions. These are primarily tailpipe emissions from fossil-fuelled road vehicles.[1]

Government policy must support the decarbonisation of the transport sector, which is a necessary component of reaching the UK’s net zero targets. Yet these targets cannot be achieved with the move to electric vehicles alone while we expand the road network further. To ensure climate targets are met, efforts must be made to cut the number of car journeys taken. Investment aimed towards new road developments undermine efforts made and the need to increase active travel levels and public transport patronage.

Incompatibility of the Roads Investment Strategy (RIS) and Net Zero

The climate and environmental impacts of road building and maintenance are significant and need to be incorporated into investment decision making. The recent National Audit Office (NAO)’s progress report on RIS2 highlighted that there will be an expectation for National Highways to better balance reducing transport emissions at the pace required to reach net zero by 2050, against a backdrop of changing technologies and road use.[2]

The scenarios in the Department for Transport’s (DfT) 2022 National Road Traffic Projections are inconsistent with the Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) carbon reductions for surface transport and the DfT’s own Transport Decarbonisation Strategy. In turn, this has led to significant misalignment of the road traffic emission reductions required between 2020 and 2032, with DfT suggesting a reduction of 35 per cent, while the CCC’s net zero balanced pathway requires reductions of over 50 per cent.

More broadly, the UK government cannot achieve its transport emissions targets with the move to electric vehicles alone.[3] To make sure climate targets are met, efforts must also be made to cut the number of car journeys made in England, similar to what has been announced in Scotland, Wales and London. Therefore, additional road capacity will become a stranded asset.

Greater scrutiny of the embedded carbon of RIS programmes is needed

Analysis from Transport for Quality of Life showed RIS2 is responsible for an estimated 20MtCO2 between 2020 and 2032.[4] This is far greater than DfT’s estimates, which regard schemes carried over from RIS1 as being accounted for, despite not being completed. Greater scrutiny of the impact of road schemes is required.

Lessons can be learnt from the Welsh government regarding the launch of their review of all new road schemes funded by the Welsh government.[5] Here an independent panel of experts in transport policy, climate change, highway engineering and the freight and logistics sector are analysing each road scheme’s impact on the climate and nature.

Budget from RIS would be better spent on public transport

National Highways have predicted projects planned for 2025-30 to require £11.5 billion in spending. There is a stronger economic case for repurposing part of this sizable budget to public transport and active travel.[6] A Frontier Economics study suggests that investment in roads does not result in a material increase in economic productivity[7]. The productivity of UK towns and cities is generally low and often associated with poor public transport provision. From a productivity and growth perspective, public transport is a more efficient use of investment than new roads which makes better use of restricted space in urban areas and reduces congestion. [8]

Public transport investment best addresses levelling up and fairness as those without access to a car are most likely to be from poorer households.[9]

The roads investment programme should place greater emphasis on maintaining existing roads and overcoming the environmental issues associated with the existing road network, including the installation of sufficient facilities for electric vehicles.

February 2023

Endnotes