South Western Railway has revealed its commitment and roadmap to meeting net zero carbon emissions by 2040.
The award-winning rail operator has collaborated with Network Rail and several key stakeholders in order to create the rail industry's first resilient, transparent and budget-friendly roadmap to net zero which has also been backed by the Department for Transport.
The collaboration aims to lead the industry approach to decarbonisation for the entire UK rail network and will be guided by the new Great British Railways, creating a contemporary, state-of-the-art, sustainable railway for the future which will encourage the return of customers following the pandemic.
In line with the Paris Agreement which aims to limit global warming to 1.5°C., South Western Railway will reduce its carbon footprint using challenging science-based targets. The rail operator's commitment follows commitments by FirstGroup in 2021 as the first UK public transport company to agree to net-zero targets.
The hard-hitting targets have been assessed independently and will see auditing carried out by climate experts from the Science Based Targets Initiative which is a recognised authority from around the world that supports companies to set emission reduction targets in line with the most up-to-date science.
The rail operator's unique roadmap to net zero has been specially created to meet the very latest analysis of the rail operator's climate impact with more than 52% of its emissions being due to supply chains, 45% from operating train services and 3% from buildings including stations and depots.
South Western Railway's roadmap is built on five key principles:
- Scientifically grounded: emission reduction targets have been calculated in accordance with globally accepted scientific standards
- Value for money: a rigorous cost-benefit analysis will be central to the decision-making process when selecting interventions
- Targeting ‘quick wins' first: swift and decisive action will be taken to decarbonise where there is the most control and influence
- Remaining dynamic: the roadmap remains flexible and ready to respond to changes in the wider industry and economy
- Collaboration: working closely with the supply chain and key stakeholders in the industry, including Network Rail and the DfT
The use of innovative methods and technologies alongside the decarbonisation of the electricity grid will see the rail operator achieve its aims including retrofitting buildings, the installation of more LEDs, increasing its use of electric vehicles, a reduction in gas usage and moving from diesel to more sustainable fuel sources.
The rail operator also sees its role in supporting others to cut their carbon footprint and will encourage sustainable transport options both to and from its station using initiatives such as providing increased cycle storage and electric vehicle charging points.
The Rail Safety and Standards Board carbon calculator will be used in order to carefully monitor South Western Railways embodied carbon footprint alongside suppliers being asked to provide Environmental Product Declarations for other carbon details.
Amy Dickinson, Head of Sustainability at South Western Railway, commented: “Tackling climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the railway, and indeed the whole country. Taking the train is already one of the most sustainable ways to travel, and we are proud of the progress we have made so far, but we know that more needs to be done.
“We are leading the way as the first train operating company to publish a robust, transparent, and cost-effective roadmap to net zero by 2040, ten years ahead of the UK's overall 2050 legal deadline.
“We want to work holistically on sustainable transport links to and from our stations, trialling new technology, and utilising opportunities to create hundreds of green jobs across our network, ensuring our customers can travel in an increasingly green and sustainable way.
“We have a plan, but we know we can't do this alone. We want to collaborate closely with the Department for Transport, Network Rail, our supply chain, and local councils to make this landmark ambition a reality.”
Kevin Foster MP, Rail Minister at the Department for Transport, commented: “Southern Western Railway's commitment to deliver net zero carbon emissions by 2040, is a bold and ambitious target which will make our railways even greener.
“Through our Transport Decarbonisation Plan and commitments like SWR's, our railway is leading the way in creating cleaner, more environmentally friendly ways to travel.”
George Davies, Sustainable Development Director, RSSB said “It is really encouraging to see the leadership and action being committed to by South Western Railway in their ambitious decarbonisation roadmap. It will contribute to best practice for the rest of the industry to learn from and apply elsewhere.
“We are currently finalising the Sustainable Rail Strategy, which will provide consensus on action areas and targets needed to achieve a net zero railway by 2050, eliminating emissions from both trains and fixed infrastructure.”
The rail operator's ability to meet net zero carbon emissions by 2040 will be impacted by a number of external factors which include but are not limited to: Government funding, policy commitments to decarbonise the National Grid and electrify the rail network; investment and innovation in rolling stock technology; and action from the wider value chain.
South Western Railway's vision for a clean and green railway will take a good number of years to achieve alongside an ongoing concerted and collaborative effort from rail operators, infrastructure managers and essentially the supply chain put in place by Government and Great British Railways.
I’m not sure how many of South Western Railway’s route miles are electrified, but achieving zero carbon by 2040 will depend very largely on this; and electrifying any remaining route miles is not within its power to do. The electricity it uses for its trains will also need to be generated wholly from renewable fuels, and achieving this by 2040 is doubtful also. It won’t be achieved by solely using intermittent wind and solar, and whether there will be sufficient nuclear capacity to take over the current ~45% of the UK’s current generating capacity powered by natural gas is also doubtful. As for “moving from diesel to more sustainable fuel sources” what exactly are these?
Getting to zero carbon is certainly a laudable aim but this announcement from South Western Railway looks to me more like PR puffery than anything that is seriously achievable, and it must have taken up an awful lot of staff hours to put together that instead could have been used to make their train service better.