Archived press release

Government support for new roads will fail to cut emissions from transport

22 July 2009

Commenting on the Government's announcement on regional transport schemes announced today (22 July 2009), Friends of the Earth's transport campaigner David Powell said:

"Just one week after the Government pledged to cut carbon emissions from transport, it has fallen at the first hurdle. Waving through proposals for new roads risks increasing carbon emissions from transport - not reducing them.

"Regions still need to demonstrate why their proposals make sound business and environmental sense before the Government will pay out. But new roads could mean terrible value for money for the taxpayer particularly given the history of cost increases for such schemes.

"We need a genuine low-carbon transport strategy that ensures regions and local authorities only propose schemes that reduce emissions from transport.

"To tackle climate change the Government must do more to change the way we travel - this means rejecting calls for new roads and earmarking money for low-carbon alternatives like public transport, cycling and walking."

Notes to Editors

1. On 15 July 2009 the Department for Transport unveiled its Low-Carbon Transport Strategy, which contained plans to cut emissions from transport by 14 per cent by 2020. Friends of the Earth welcomed the clear statement that emissions savings from technological improvements would have to be accompanied by changes in the way people travel, but there were a number of elephants in the room. There was no mention, for example, of the Government's continuing support for airport expansion, including the massively controversial third runway at Heathrow Airport. The Strategy also rejected calls from Friends of the Earth and others for the establishment of a new Carbon Reduction Fund for transport to ringfence money to support pioneering low-carbon schemes.

2. Last week local authorities also received the final guidance from Department for Transport on how they should prepare their next local transport plans for the years beyond 2011. Councils have huge influence over how people travel - over half of all car journeys are for trips of less than five miles. Yet there is nothing in the guidance to compel councils to cut carbon - and the Department for Transport will not even sign off the final plans. This means that councils are free to compile new lists of road schemes that they want to fund with Government money - and as shown by Department for Transport's decision today, the Government seems to have little appetite to reject them.

3. Road schemes previously approved through the Regional Funding process have an unenviable track record of cost escalation: http://www.bettertransport.org.uk/campaigns/climate_change/roads/proposals/most

4. Department for Transport's Carbon Pathways Analysis http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/sustainable/analysis.pdf

5. Friends of the Earth's Get Serious About Co2 campaign is calling for councils to cut carbon emissions from their local areas by 40% by 2020. Road transport is a major contributor to local emissions. One of the main ways to cut carbon is therefore to make the right decisions on local transport - focusing investment on reducing people's need to travel and providing much better alternatives to car use, such as first-rate public transport and cycling facilities. More information: www.getseriousaboutco2.com

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Published by Friends of the Earth Trust