Network
Contributing Writer rail@bauermedia.co.uk
DECARBONISING UK freight transport in line with the ‘1.5 degree goal’ is feasible, but it requires acceleration of investment into solutions as well as “clear leadership and action” by government.
That’s the verdict of the Decarbonising UK Freight Transport programme, a government-backed network of 11 universities and 30 industry partners.
Its newly published final report- Accelerating Investment for Decarbonising UK Freight Transport -is the culmination of three and a half years of work. It concludes that electrification is a “common need” across all freight modes and therefore is a “no-regrets, low-risk investment” for public and private investors.
Noting that renewable fuels of non-biological origin (RFNBO -for example, hydrogen-derived fuels such as methanol and ammonia) have the greatest role in decarbonising domestic and international maritime freight, the report concludes that they may also have a “limited role in some niches” for road and rail freight. For rail, the report says that evidence indicates decarbonisation is best achieved with “predominantly electrification using existing electric rail lines and expansion of an electric-enabled rail freight network”.
This requires investment of another 800 miles of rail over the next 20 years, enabling 95% of freight haulage to be carried electrically by the mid-2040s.
It is suggested that an electrification programme of 40 miles per year over a 20-year period, with a cost of approximately £100 million per annum, is required to deliver electrification at the levels necessary for when current diesel locomotives reach life expiry.
Initial phases should cover cross-country routes from main ports such as Felixstowe and Southampton, and also enable modal shift from diesel HGVs.
Covering all modes, the report claims to be the first to make specific recommendations on fuel transition for road, rail and maritime freight.
It challenges the narrative of “multiple pathways” for different freight modes that “all solutions should be on the table”. The report says this is ultimately delaying the transition across the freight modes.
Ports are identified as being ‘decarbonisation hubs’ where infrastructure and decarbonisation solutions’ synergies can be exploited for freight and wider industries.
Mobilising investment for decarbonising UK freight is the objective of the study.
However, stakeholders highlighted two major ‘chicken-and-egg’-type barriers because of the investment risks.
Firstly, which should lead investments in vehicles/vessels or energ
