Greener Vision Keywords Environmental

A green recovery must have public transport at its heart

Published on: 17th June 2020 by Claire Haigh.

We have had a glimpse of a world with clean air, but it is fading fast. The lockdown emptied the roads, cleared the skies and precipitated a 60% drop in nitrogen dioxide levels. However, as economies restart, global emissions have already bounced back to just 5% below pre-pandemic daily levels. And now as Government urges…

It’s time for an honest conversation

Published on: 22nd May 2020 by Claire Haigh.

Net Zero: How We Stop Causing Climate Change by Dieter Helm is a must read for anyone serious about tackling climate change. It blows apart the myths and self-delusions that block us from seeing clearly. With laser like precision it presents a clear diagnosis of the problem and sets out a prospectus for change that…

What future do we want?

Published on: 21st February 2020 by Claire Haigh.

We were told decades ago to expect this. Ciara, and in quick succession Dennis, have wreaked havoc and devastation to thousands of homes and livelihoods. Tragically the death toll from these extreme weather events continues to rise, and we are warned it’s not over yet. Storm Ellen is on the way. A changing climate is…

Begin with the end in mind

Published on: 20th January 2020 by Claire Haigh.

There is a lot riding on COP26. The last decade was the hottest on record. Global greenhouse gas emissions need to fall by 7.6% every year to 2030, but there is no sign even of emissions peaking in the next few years. As host nation UK is under heightened pressure to demonstrate credible and consistent…

Decarbonising Transport

Published on: 8th November 2019 by Claire Haigh.

Pressure to deliver a credible plan for net zero will weigh heavily on whoever is in Number 10 on the 13th December. Heightened levels of public concern about climate change will be in even sharper focus next year when the UK hosts COP26. Let’s start by acknowledging the scale of the challenge. If we are…

Why Government must honour its pledge to increase fuel duty in line with inflation

Published on: 1st June 2018 by Claire Haigh Professor David Beg.

Increasing costs for road users is politically difficult. This is one of the reasons why we have had seven years and eight consecutive budgets where fuel duty has been frozen at a time of historically low oil prices and austerity. The result of seven years of fuel duty freezes is that the price of fuel…

A Step Change for Air Quality

Published on: 27th October 2017 by Claire Haigh.

This week the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, took the biggest step towards improving London’s air quality since the introduction of the congestion charge 14 years ago. The capital’s air quality has frequently breached EU limits in recent years but the Mayor’s courageous decision to introduce the toxicity charge shows that he is serious about…

A sustainable model for road use

Published on: 14th July 2017 by Claire Haigh.

Why should roads be free to use at the point of use? We don’t expect to use airports or railways without paying for them, but when we’re on the roads we forget the cost of building and maintaining them – until we hit a pothole and wonder why the council hasn’t done anything to fix…

Mayor’s Transport Strategy – a breath of fresh air

Published on: 23rd June 2017 by Professor David Begg.

The Mayor’s Transport strategy is a breath of fresh air – and not just in a metaphorical way. It is visionary and robust. It gets the balance right between enticing Londoners to continue the shift away from car travel to more sustainable modes (walking, cycling and public transport) with the essential, but politically more difficult…

Congestion is not just a drag on the economy, it kills.

Published on: 15th June 2017 by Claire Haigh.

Greener Journeys has published new research which demonstrates that reducing congestion must be at the heart of Government’s strategy to improve air quality. Halving average city traffic speeds leads to a 50% increase in harmful NOx emissions. While it is essential to clean up diesel vehicles, it is also crucial that the continual decline in…

Reduce car use to meet emissions challenge

Published on: 19th July 2016 by Claire Haigh.

The recent progress report from the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) makes for interesting reading. The good news is that that greenhouse gas emissions have fallen by an average of 4.5% in the past three years and are now 38% below 1990 levels. However, the less encouraging news is that this reduction in emissions has…

To tackle poor air quality, we need to talk about modal shift

Published on: 2nd February 2016 by Claire Haigh.

Air quality has shot up the agenda. It is estimated that poor air quality may cause 29,000 early deaths a year, and transport has been identified as a major contributor. Government is rightly focused on the issue, as recent announcements on the Clean Air Zones and Clean Bus Technology Fund demonstrate. But why has there…

Keywords: Environmental