v, Carbon offset schemes 4
3.0 Negative effects 5
3.1 Old cars in use 5
3.2 Cheaper long-haul flights 5
3.3 Special tendencies 5
4.0 Recommendation 6
5.0 Conclusion 7
References 8
Bibliography 11
Appendices 13
1.0 Introduction
It is very difficult to imagine the World without travelling.
People are travelling for all kinds of reasons and purposes such as getting to the workplace or going on holidays. Travelling is necessary, but how damaging the growth of this sector is?
Travel and transport industry is one of the most expanding industries in the World but on the other hand it is the most polluting as well.
Sustaining the appropriate balance between the growth of the transport and travel industry and the conservation of the environment must be our main concern on an individual basis as well as collectively.
2.0 Positive trends towards sustainability
2.1 Environmental consciousness
Being environmentally conscious became a trend in recent years. Choosing a holiday-destination and the means of transport demonstrates the awareness of these people of environmental issues. Those would normally not book holidays far away, even if their wealth would imply to do so. While Tony Blair used to spend his holidays in Barbados and Miami, the current PM Gordon Brown stayed in Blackpool. (Graeme Wilson 2007) His action confirms that the emphasis should be shifted to an individual basis instead of expecting governments and businesses to do the first step towards saving the nature.
2.2 Government Policies
i, Road tax
Environmentally conscious planning can be seen in the way tax rates were set up. Depending on how polluting a vehicle is, different amount road tax is to be paid. (Huma Qureshi 2007) People who use hybrids or small cars can pay a tenth of the highest rates, and could be exempt of paying congestion charge, and parking fee in certain cities. (Edinburgh Council 2004)
ii, Air Passenger Duty
The objective of the Air Passenger Duty is the same as the vehicle excise duty's. Since the 1st of February 2006 the duty has doubled which affected the accessibility of flying significantly; especially the long-haul ones' as they became less affordable. (P. Thornton and B. Clement 2006) Long haul flights' duty had been increased by £40, while short haul ones' between £10 and £20 (BBC News 02/2007), which can encourage people to fly to nearer destinations if there is a choice. According to EasyJet, an average flight from London to Miami emits ten times more carbon dioxide than their London to Nice flight.(EasyJet 2007) Being much cheaper, and emitting tenth of the greenhouse gases is enough reason for choosing the latter for many.
iii, Ten years plan
The Government has started a Ten Years plan in 2000 with an investment of 180 billion. (Government News Network 2001) That improvement of the road network and the public transport system took place in order to reduce the CO2 emission and encourage people to leave their cars home.
2.3 Technological developments
i, Improved cars
There are 24 million car on our roads.(Camden Council 2007) But surprisingly this amount doesn't pollute the environment more as third as much cars did decades ago. Improved vehicle engineering can have a significant and constant impact on preserving our environment. New cars can emit as little as 15% of their predecessors emission was fifteen years ago.
ii, Bigger planes
As the Internet enabled the operating of real-time, dynamically pricing booking systems, it is now possible to reduce dramatically the empty seats an aircraft flying with. That is lowering substantially the CO2 emission per passenger. It is also positive that newly constructed air planes are designed to carry more passengers - up to 840 in an Airbus 380 - (BBC News 2005) with much more efficient engines than before. Environmentally conscious people are likely to consider these factors when choosing an airline.
iii, Fast train services
Train services became recently real alternatives, therefore competitors of airline services as they are safer and in some cases much faster, like the Paris-London and Paris-Brussels routes.(Charles Batchelor 2007) Using electricity for travel that was produced from renewable sources is the ultimate goal, what nowadays' train services made the first step towards.(BBC News 12/2007)
iv, Internet
Business meetings are more often held without the need of travel through video links on the Internet. As technology becomes widespread, demand for business travel will fall significantly, as people will choose the on-line alternatives as they are less time consuming, much cheaper and almost equally effective.(Keynote 2007)
v, Carbon offset schemes
The most emitting companies, especially airlines started setting up research and carbon offset schemes, where for a small premium - usually 80p - £1.50 - (EasyJet 2007) customers can participate paying towards the development of new technologies which could solve the problem of polluting one day. These research and offset schemes are appealing for those environmentally aware. Whatever the outcomes will be, these schemes could help reducing one's carbon footprint, if not other means, but planting as many trees, as can offset the amount of gas emitted on the flight.
- Negative effects
3.1 Old cars in use
As the average car age in Britain is only 6.8 years. (P. Rodger, T. Shallcross 2007) While in other countries this could be as much as 20, with the pollution 10-15 times of the modern vehicles. The least polluting cars are still the most expensive.
3.2 Cheaper long-haul flights
The demand of flying is increasing significantly since the fierce competition resulted in falling airline ticket prices.(Mintel 2007) People who couldn't afford recently to go abroad are more likely to take advantage of prices as low as 1p. While for the middle class places like Fiji became a must see destination despite it is the furthest point on Earth. A very high amount of greenhouse gases are emitted by these routes.
3.3 Special tendencies
Making possible for Eastern European workers to overtake jobs in Britain created special trends in travelling. These people regularly visit their home country usually at least twice a year. A bunch of new airlines were set up only to satisfy their needs, operating low-cost and very frequent flights between some 50 Eastern European cities and the same number of Western ones.(Elissa Richard 2007) As these people are price sensitive, they can't be appealed by emphasising environmental features of airlines.
4.0 Recommendation
Travel and transport businesses should take advantage of technological developments and reduce their carbon emission and at the same time increase their speed and capacity. By this they could appeal to a much wider range of customers including those environmentally conscious.
Electricity powered means of transport would not just be much cheaper and greener at the same time, but would be more reliable than the fossil fuel powered alternatives.
World-wide schemes encouraging people to opt for public transport or to use their cars less would be the ultimate solution towards sustainability.
5.0 Conclusion
As long as being environmentally conscious is a self-actualisation need, a self-defining reference point and a differentiating advantage, trends turn towards sustainability. The process is like the moment when the electric train engines took over the coal powered ones.
There will be a time, when transport and travel businesses will have to follow the same steps as otherwise they will be neglected by environmentally aware customers that will form the majority. Then those businesses will have to pay more and more attention on researching and developing technologies that are carbon neutral, or uses electricity that fully produced from renewable sources.
With all these, transport and travel industry would not be seen as the biggest polluter, but as the industry that committed the most to reduce the impact on the environment, and to operate on a true sustainable basis.
References
Graeme Wilson 2007, Unlike Blair,Gordon Brown will holiday in UK, Telegraph [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 28 November]
Huma Qureshi 2007, Road tax reductions on hybrid cars leave no excuses for dirty drivers. The Observer[on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 28th November]
Edinburgh council 2004, Battery Electric Vehicles in Edinburgh [on-line] available at:
P. Thornton and B. Clement 2006, Brown to raise £1bn by doubling air passenger duty, The Independent [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
BBC News 02/2007, Q&A: Air passenger tax rise [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
EasyJet 2007, Carbon calculator [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
Government News Network 2001, Department Of The Environment, Transport And The Regions [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
Camden Council 2007, Vehicle emission [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
BBC News 2005,Airbus 308 completes test flights [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 5th December]
Charles Batchelor 2007,GLOBAL TRAVELLER: Travellers may still take some convincing, Financial Times
[Accessed on 6th December]
BBC News 12/2007, Power station may extract methane [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 6th December]
Keynote report 2007, Business Travel Market [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 5th December]
EasyJet 2007, Carbon offsetting [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
Peter Rodger and Tim Shallcross 2007, The future is .. What colour??, IAM trust Driving Road Safety
[Accessed on 5th December]
Elissa Richard 2007, Get around Europe cheaper, faster, and with less hassle than ever before
Mintel 2007, Scheduled airlines UK
[Accessed on 5th December]
Bibliography:
Vechicle Excise Duty rates for 2006/7 [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
Department for transport 2000, Transport Ten Year Plan 2000: summary [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
FT Intelligence 2007, Travellers go green
VCars 2007, The greenest cars on Earth? ...so far?[on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
Independent portal site about ford in Europe 2007 [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 2nd December]
BBC News 2006, Green buses provide cleaner ride [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 5th December]
Lenntech & air purification Holding B.V. 2006 [on-line] available at:
The Independent 2007 Ben Russell: Government 'puts the economy before the environment' with transport plan [on-line] available at:
The Government Statistics 2004 KS15 Travel to Work: Key Statistics for urban areas, results by population size of urban area England and Wales [on-line] available at:
Commission for Inegrated Transport 2001, The average lifespan of a UK car
Per Kågeson 2005, Reducing CO2 Emission from New Cras
BBC News 1999, Prescott’s big plan [on-line] available at:
[Accessed on 5th December]
Appendices
Appendix A
Travel to Work: Key Statistics for urban areas, results by population size of urban area England and Wales
Appendix B
Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) Rates 2007/8
*for new cars registered after 23 March 2006
It is worth noting that the Chancellor also announced that the VED rate for Band G vehicles will rise to a substantial £400 in 2008!
Appendix C
UK scheduled airlines capacity statistics, 2002 and 2006
Appendix D
Appendix E
Average Number of Trips, Average Trip Length and Average Distance Travelled in Private Vehicles per Person per Year (number and miles), 1998/2000 and 2002-2005