Periodic Reporting for period 1 - DTImplement (Decarbonising Transport – Driving implementation actions)
Reporting period: 2021-03-01 to 2022-08-31
The European Commission aims at making Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050 to keep global warming with all related consequences in check. This objective is proposed to be enshrined in the European Climate Law, to ensure that all EU policies contribute to this goal and that all sectors of the economy and society play their part. Reducing transport emissions will remain one of the major challenge in this context. The transport sector is responsible for 23% of direct energy-related CO2 emissions (3 to 4% more when accounting for emissions on a well-to-wheel basis, and even more when taking into account vehicle manufacturing and infrastructure construction); the sector remains directly dependent on oil for 92% of its energy end-use. Despite its importance for halting climate change, efforts to decarbonise transport have so far been limited and insufficient.
In a scenario where current and announced mitigation policies are implemented, direct transport CO2 emissions are projected to grow by 60% by 2050. Assuming more ambitious decarbonisation policies, they are projected to fall by 30%. But even this reduction would not suffice to maintain average global temperature increases well below two degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era, as targeted by the 2015 Paris Agreement. Significant progress in vehicle efficiency in these scenarios will be more than cancelled out by strong growth in demand for transport. Despite all efforts, current transport decarbonisation policies are far from sufficient to stop transport emissions from growing, let alone to reverse the trend.
Further, the European Commission’s new growth strategy, i.e. its European Green Deal, aims to transform the EU into a fair and prosperous society, with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy. The transition has to be just and inclusive; it must put people first, and pay attention to the regions, industries and workers who will face the greatest challenges.
Innovations enabled by digital connectivity, increases in computational power, falling costs of new technologies and low- and zero- carbon energy vectors (including electricity, bioenergy, hydrogen and/or electrofuels) hold the potential to help reducing CO2 emissions and to achieve greater sustainability in the transport sector, all while allowing for a fair transition to a decarbonised sector. Achieving these objectives will rely on the right government policies.
This project aims at:
1) Providing fora for EU member states and other countries/economies, and all key transport stakeholders to identify transport R&I priorities of common interest, addressing technological, societal and behavioural aspects to fight climate change, as well as to support a socially fair transition towards connected, integrated, sustainable and safe transport and mobility for all;
2) Supporting the transfer of innovative transport and mobility solutions into concrete policy actions at local, national and international level; and
3) Create a favourable environment for the implementation of sustainable and inclusive transport policies, including tax reforms, regulation, modelling tools, land use, externality pricing, and finance, governance and business mechanisms.
In a scenario where current and announced mitigation policies are implemented, direct transport CO2 emissions are projected to grow by 60% by 2050. Assuming more ambitious decarbonisation policies, they are projected to fall by 30%. But even this reduction would not suffice to maintain average global temperature increases well below two degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era, as targeted by the 2015 Paris Agreement. Significant progress in vehicle efficiency in these scenarios will be more than cancelled out by strong growth in demand for transport. Despite all efforts, current transport decarbonisation policies are far from sufficient to stop transport emissions from growing, let alone to reverse the trend.
Further, the European Commission’s new growth strategy, i.e. its European Green Deal, aims to transform the EU into a fair and prosperous society, with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy. The transition has to be just and inclusive; it must put people first, and pay attention to the regions, industries and workers who will face the greatest challenges.
Innovations enabled by digital connectivity, increases in computational power, falling costs of new technologies and low- and zero- carbon energy vectors (including electricity, bioenergy, hydrogen and/or electrofuels) hold the potential to help reducing CO2 emissions and to achieve greater sustainability in the transport sector, all while allowing for a fair transition to a decarbonised sector. Achieving these objectives will rely on the right government policies.
This project aims at:
1) Providing fora for EU member states and other countries/economies, and all key transport stakeholders to identify transport R&I priorities of common interest, addressing technological, societal and behavioural aspects to fight climate change, as well as to support a socially fair transition towards connected, integrated, sustainable and safe transport and mobility for all;
2) Supporting the transfer of innovative transport and mobility solutions into concrete policy actions at local, national and international level; and
3) Create a favourable environment for the implementation of sustainable and inclusive transport policies, including tax reforms, regulation, modelling tools, land use, externality pricing, and finance, governance and business mechanisms.
The ITF created three country-led stakeholder fora or "common interest groups", focusing on heavy-duty road freight transport, shipping and aviation.
These fora bring together experts from governments, industry, the research community and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for peer-to-peer exchange and mutual learning.
Each group plans to meet four times within the project's two-year timeframe (2021-2022) and focus on concrete policy and technology solutions to achieve significant CO2 reductions in their targeted sector.
Till the end of the first reporting period, the ITF has convened three group meetings for each of these groups.The first group meeting mainly served to identify the topic and scope of the work carried out by the group (i.e. a specific policy or technological solution to be tackled by the group); the second and third meetings discussed the focus topics and started defining policy questions and potential policy pathways to implement the solutions and make them work.
Specific outputs for each group were the following:
- The heavy duty freight transport group developed a report that assesses the total costs of ownership of different technology options to decarbonise road freight transport. The study develops a novel approach to such type of cost assessment and is focused on assumptions/parameters valid for the European context.
- The shipping group focused on the impacts of carbon pricing on shipping and started preparing a report on this topic to be submitted to the relevant IMO working group.
- The aviation stakeholder group developed a shared policy vision on the uptake of sustainable aviation fuels. This shared policy vision document was prepared in the anticipation of the ICAO meetings, where this vision could feed an information paper submission by the ITF, together with members of the common interest group.
These fora bring together experts from governments, industry, the research community and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) for peer-to-peer exchange and mutual learning.
Each group plans to meet four times within the project's two-year timeframe (2021-2022) and focus on concrete policy and technology solutions to achieve significant CO2 reductions in their targeted sector.
Till the end of the first reporting period, the ITF has convened three group meetings for each of these groups.The first group meeting mainly served to identify the topic and scope of the work carried out by the group (i.e. a specific policy or technological solution to be tackled by the group); the second and third meetings discussed the focus topics and started defining policy questions and potential policy pathways to implement the solutions and make them work.
Specific outputs for each group were the following:
- The heavy duty freight transport group developed a report that assesses the total costs of ownership of different technology options to decarbonise road freight transport. The study develops a novel approach to such type of cost assessment and is focused on assumptions/parameters valid for the European context.
- The shipping group focused on the impacts of carbon pricing on shipping and started preparing a report on this topic to be submitted to the relevant IMO working group.
- The aviation stakeholder group developed a shared policy vision on the uptake of sustainable aviation fuels. This shared policy vision document was prepared in the anticipation of the ICAO meetings, where this vision could feed an information paper submission by the ITF, together with members of the common interest group.
This project will encourage decision makers across Europe - and beyond – to commit to implementing transport policies that contribute to GHG emission reduction from transport, while also contributing to economic and social development, along the lines outlined by Europe’s Green New Deal. This will promote the global scale-up of transport solutions that work, and drive their further uptake by encouraging more and more countries to follow leading examples – well beyond the timeframe of this project. The project will encourage countries to commit to policy measures and innovate transport and mobility solutions that contribute to increased energy efficiency, GHG and local pollutant emission reductions, foster sustainable economic growth and ensure a fair transition to a decarbonised economy that brings benefits to all.
More specifically, the project could also lead to establishing further common interest groups on innovative transport solutions. It could even serve as role model for common interest groups that are defined in other sectors, or to cross-sectoral common interest groups, all with the objective to drive the transition to a clean economy in a fair and inclusive way, in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal. The groups may become the first ones of a series of similar efforts that bring stakeholders from various domains and backgrounds together, on a global scale and with global reach, all dedicated and committed to achieving a green transition.
More specifically, the project could also lead to establishing further common interest groups on innovative transport solutions. It could even serve as role model for common interest groups that are defined in other sectors, or to cross-sectoral common interest groups, all with the objective to drive the transition to a clean economy in a fair and inclusive way, in line with the objectives of the European Green Deal. The groups may become the first ones of a series of similar efforts that bring stakeholders from various domains and backgrounds together, on a global scale and with global reach, all dedicated and committed to achieving a green transition.