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Home, Travel and Food: together they make up more than 60% of the average UK resident's carbon footprint. Here you'll find the latest news, research and ideas to help you cut their impact.

What's the greenest car?Print

Despite rising fuel prices and increasing congestion, we still love our cars.

As a result, in the UK 78% of domestic transport emissions come from private car use. If we want to live more sustainably and reduce our carbon footprint, the way we get about needs to change, but how?

Introducing the government's white paper on sustainable local transport, Norman Baker, Under-Secretary of State for Transport, said:  "It is the short-distance local trip where the biggest opportunity exists for people to make sustainable travel choices. Around two out of every three trips we make are less than 5 miles in length, many of which could be easily cycled, walked or undertaken by public transport."

What's the alternative?

 The rise in prices at the pump is already driving advances in fuel efficiency while European regulation on new car CO2 emissions may result in emissions being reduced by 7 million tonnes of CO2 a year in 2020. Here are some of the alternatives that may be appearing on our roads in the decades ahead.

Hybrid electric vehicle (HEV)

HEVs maximise fuel consumption by combining electric power from an on-board battery with a standard internal combustion engine - the car then switches between the two power sources.

Ford, Chevrolet, Honda and Nissan all manufacture hybrid electric cars.Toyota has sold three million of its hybrid electric cars worldwide in total, with more than a million sold in the last 18 months.

The 2010 Prius model runs for around 70 miles on a single gallon, emitting around 89g/km of carbon. It's also exempt from road tax and congestion charges because its emissions fall below the Government's 100g/km threshold. Such savings come at a price though, as it retails for over £20,000.

Electric vehicle (EV)

EVs rely  on battery power. Battery technology has advanced to produce more compact and lighter designs such as the G-Whiz, Citroen's ev'ie and Tesla's sports cars. The ev'ie, which is relatively high-performance, has a range of 60 - 75 miles before it needs recharging and the G-Whiz has a top speed of 50mph.

From January 2011, grants of up to £5,000 will be available for buyers of electric cars in which lithium ion batteries are charged from mains.

Hydrogen vehicle

Using fuel cell technology, hydrogen is split and combined with oxygen from the air, which generates electricity.

Audi, Chrysler, GM and Fiat have all attempted to develop their own hydrogen-powered cars, but none has yet worked out how to make this technology economically viable. Hope is on the horizon, however. The Riversimple Urban Car, currently being developed by teams at Cranfield and Oxford Universities, is due for production in 2013.

Look to the future

The Carbon Trust estimates that the UK fuel cell market alone could be worth $19bn, with corresponding savings of 7 million tonnes of CO2 a year. Even so, the Department of Transport says that it is supporting the development of the ultra-low carbon vehicle market to help the technology take off.

For now, the future looks electric. London Mayor Boris Johnson has announced that Source London, the capital's citywide electric vehicle charging network will go live next spring. The new network will deliver 1,300 public charge points across London by 2013. And more cities across theUK, such as Brighton & Hove, could follow.

Key facts

* The Government's Committee on Climate Change, recommends charging points for up to 1.7 million electric cars and plug in hybrids within 10 years

* Department for Transport figures show that in 2008 over 80% (679 billion km) of total annual passenger kilometres were driven in cars, light vans and taxis in the UK. Only 0.5%, or 5 billion kilometres, were travelled by bike.


 

Sources

[1] Greenhouse gas emissions from transport represent 21% of the totalUnited  Kingdom domestic emissions. Emissions from private car use constitute 78% of that figure, representing 17% of total emissions or 91.5 million tonnes of CO in 2008
Information Source: House of Lords,  Call for Evidence: Behaviour Change - Travel-Mode Choice Interventions to Reduce Car Use in Towns and Cities (Page 1)
 
[2] It is the short-distance local trip where the biggest opportunity exists for people to make sustainable travel choices. Around two out of every three trips we make are less than 5 miles in length, many of which could be easily cycled, walked or undertaken by public transport. 
Information Source: Creating Growth, Cutting Carbon: making sustainable local transport happen (January 2011) (Page 5)

[3] In the UK alone, the Regulation is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by 7 million tonnes of CO2 a year in 2020
Information Source: Department of Transport, Low Carbon Transport (A Greener Future EU Regulation on New Car CO2, Page 38)
 
[4] Toyota has sold three million of its hybrid electric cars worldwide in total, with more than a million sold in the last 18 months
Information Source: Toyota
 
[5] The 2010 Prius model runs for around 70 miles on a single gallon, emitting around 89g/km of carbon. Such savings come at a price though, as it retails for over £20,000.
Information Source: Toyota UK
 
[6] It's also exempt from road tax and congestion charges because its emissions fall below the Government's 100g/km threshold.
Information Source: Toyota UK, 'Avoid congestion charging with the Toyota Prius'
 
[7] The ev'ie has a range of 60 - 75 miles before it needs recharging
Information Source: The Electric Car Corporation, Introducing the Citroen
 
[8] The G-Whiz has a top speed of 50mph
Information Source: Going Green, What is a GWiz and how do I use it?
 
[9] From January 2011, grants of up to £5,000 will be available for buyers of electric cars in which lithium ion batteries are charged from mains
Information Source: Department of Business, Innovation and Skills, Electric Vehicle charging points trialled
 
[10] The Riversimple Urban Car, currently being developed by teams at Cranfield and Oxford Universities, is due for production in 2013.
Information Source: Riversimple
 
[11] The Carbon Trust estimates that the UK fuel cell market alone could be worth $19bn, with corresponding savings of 7 million tonnes of CO2 a year.
Information Source: Carbon Trust, The Polymer Cells Fuel Challenge
 
[12] 'We recognise that it is simply not possible for public transport, walking or cycling to represent a viable alternative to the private car for all journeys, particularly in rural areas and for some longer or multi-leg journeys. Therefore the Government is committed to making car travel greener by supporting the development of the early market in electric and other ultra-low emission vehicles
the Department of Transport says that it is supporting the development of the ultra-low carbon vehicle market to help the technology take off.'
Information Source: Department of Transport, Creating Growth, Cutting Carbon Making Sustainable Local Transport Happen (Page 7)
 
[13] Source London, the capital's citywide electric vehicle charging network will go live next spring. The new network will deliver 1,300 public charge points across London by 2013
Information Source: Mayor of London, Electric vehicles for London
 
[14] The Government should complement financial support committed for electric car purchase with charging infrastructure for up to 240,000 electric cars and plug in hybrids by 2015 on the way to 1.7 million cars in 2020
Information Source: The Committee on Climate Change, Meeting Carbon Budgets - the need for a step change (Chapter 6, Page 190)
 
[15] Department for Transport figures show that in 2008 over 80% (679 billion km) of total annual passenger kilometres were driven in cars, light vans and taxis in the UK. Only 0.5%, or 5 billion kilometres, were travelled by bike
Information Source: Department for Transport, Transport Trends: 2009 edition (Page 30)

Team Green Britain and London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Ltd (LOCOG) do not endorse any of the products, companies, organisations, opinions or websites that have been mentioned in this article. The content of this article has merely been provided as background to, or discussion on, various topical issues relating to the environment and it is not necessarily representative of the views of Team Green Britain and LOCOG. Further, any figures and calculations noted in this article are estimates (unless otherwise specified), and may vary in light of numerous factors and readers are advised to undertake their own research in relation to the facts and figures applicable to their particular circumstance. Certain facts and figures shown have been sourced from third parties. Team Green Britain has not verified information sourced from third parties and Team Green Britain cannot take responsibility for the accuracy of these facts and figures.

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