About Climate change and transport

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Introduction

This section provides information on climate change as well as links to sites with information on how people individually can reduce the environmental impacts of their transport choices.

Background

Scientific evidence shows that the climate is changing.

As we burn fossil fuels we increase the amount of climate change gases in the atmosphere. The most common of these is carbon dioxide (CO2). Climate change is the world's greatest environmental challenge.

Transport accounts for around a quarter of the man-made greenhouse gas emissions from the UK.

Government targets

Since April 2005, DfT has been working with other Government Departments towards the Government’s objectives of avoiding dangerous climate change.

The Climate Change Act (November 2008) established binding emissions targets and 5-yearly carbon budgets in legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% by 2050.

In April 2009 the Government announced the level of the first three carbon budgets for the periods 2008-12, 2013-17 and 2018-22, representing respectively over a 22%, 28% and 34% reduction in greenhouse gases compared to 1990 levels.

The carbon budgets represent an increase over our previous commitment under the Kyoto Agreement; to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12.5 per cent by 2008 - 12 over 1990 levels.

In line with the Committee on Climate Change’s advice the Act does not include international aviation and shipping emissions in our targets, but includes them amongst the matters Government has to have regard to when considering the 5-yearly carbon budgets.

Policies

We are committed to reducing the impact of travel on the environment and we are promoting policies to:

  • increase the fuel efficiency of vehicles and technology policy
  • encourage a move towards more environmentally friendly forms of transport
  • including transport in emissions trading schemes
  • reduce the fossil carbon content of transport fuel

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