1 Introduction
Carbon emissions from transport
1. The Climate Change Act 2008 set a binding target
for the UK to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions to 80% below
1990 levels by 2050 and to 34% of 1990 levels by 2020.[1]
Emissions from domestic transport make up 25% of the UK's total
carbon dioxide emissions.[2]
In 2009 road transport was responsible for over 90% of the UK's
domestic transport emissions, with cars accounting for 58% of
these emissions (figure 1).[3]
The Committee on Climate Change has advised that in order to
reach the Climate Change Act's targets on carbon dioxide emission
reduction, surface transport emissions will need to be reduced
by 26% from 2008 levels by 2020 and by 91% by 2050.[4]
The Government will therefore need to make significant efforts
to decarbonise road transport in order to meet these targets.
2. Preliminary assessments of carbon emissions in
2011 indicate that carbon dioxide emissions from domestic transport
have fallen slightly compared to 2010 (1.4%).[5]
Emissions from transport have been falling since 2008,[6]
a trend which the Government attributes to improvements in new
car efficiency, increased use of biofuels and the economic downturn.[7]
However, the Committee on Climate Change has warned that "there
is a risk that surface transport emissions increase as the economy
recovers".[8]
Decarbonising transport
3. There are a number of approaches to reducing carbon
emissions from road transport. Although the Government acknowledges
that vehicle technologies using electric batteries, hydrogen fuel-cells,
biofuels and more efficient internal combustion engines will play
a role in decarbonising road transport,[9]
the DfT does not intend to adopt specific technology targets.
It is instead following a technology-neutral approach in which
it creates "a framework for improvements in average fuel
efficiency" which goes on "to create the incentives
for industry to develop the technologies that reduce emissions,
work for consumers and make economic sense."[10]
4. Up to 65% of carbon dioxide emissions from cars
come from tailpipe emissions, which vary according to engine type
and efficiency.[11]
Improvements to the efficiency of internal combustion engines
are being encouraged through EU targets, which state that average
carbon emissions from new cars should not exceed 95 g/km by 2020.[12]
However, further emissions reductions require a move away from
conventional fuels towards alternatively fuelled, ultra-low emission
vehicles (ULEVs). In 2011 the Government set out its vision for
reducing carbon emissions from cars and vans using technologies
other than internal combustion engines in the Carbon Plan. This
stated:
by 2050 almost every car and van will be an ultra
low emission vehicle (ULEV), with the UK automotive industry remaining
at the forefront of global ULEV production, delivering investment,
jobs and growth. Due to the time needed for fleet turnover, this
requires almost all new cars and vans sold to be near-zero emission
at the tailpipe by 2040.[13]
5. In this report we look at the Government's strategy
for plug-in vehicles, as the primary market-ready technology in
the ULEV range. There are a number of technologies which can
be defined as 'plug-in'. The DfT describes plug-in vehicles in
its Plug-in Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy as follows:
The term 'plug-in vehicle' is used to describe a
wide variety of different technologies that use electric drive
to power, or assist in the powering of, a vehicle. For the purpose
of this Strategy, the term plug-in vehicle is used as a generic
term to describe Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV), Plug-in Hybrid
Electric Vehicles (PHEV) and Extended-Range Electric Vehicles
(E-REV).
- In a BEV a battery pack and
electric motor replace the petrol tank and internal combustion
engine of a conventional vehicle. BEVs rely entirely on electricity
for fuel.
- A PHEV combines both a battery pack and electric
motor with an internal combustion engine. Both the electric motor
and the internal combustion engine can drive the wheels. The battery
pack is much smaller than in a BEV, tending to only drive the
wheels at low speeds or for limited range, with the internal combustion
engine driving the wheels when the battery is depleted or when
extra power is required.
- An E-REV also has both a battery pack and electric
motor, as well as an internal combustion engine. The battery pack
tends to be larger than in a PHEV but smaller than in a BEV. The
electric motor always drives the wheels, with the internal combustion
engine acting as a generator to recharge the battery when it is
depleted.
E-REVs and PHEVs can use a number of low carbon technologies
to provide their additional range and power, such as highly efficient
internal combustion engines, sustainable biofuels or hydrogen.[14]
All these vehicles are capable of being plugged into
mains electricity. This differentiates them from a conventional
hybrid [vehicle], which also uses electricity to help drive the
wheels but cannot be plugged into the mains, generating electricity
only through regenerative braking.
6. Following a seminar on sustainable transport in
November 2011, we called for evidence in March 2012 on the take
up of plug-in vehicles by the public, the effectiveness of the
Government's Plugged-in Places scheme, the role of other technologies
in decarbonising road transport and the approaches taken by other
countries to encourage low carbon vehicle purchases. We received
25 submissions of written evidence. On 12 June 2012 we heard
evidence from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Coventry
University, Evalu8 Transport Innovations Ltd, the Society of Motor
Manufacturers and Traders Ltd, Toyota, General Motors and Parliamentary
Under-Secretary of State for Transport, Norman Baker MP. We are
grateful to those who provided oral and written evidence.
7. The Government's Plug-In Vehicle Infrastructure
Strategy states that the "policy framework aims to both stimulate
and accommodate the expected substantial growth in plug-in vehicles
in the UK."[15]
In this report we comment on each of these aspects of Government
policy. We consider the Government's efforts to stimulate consumer
demand for plug-in vehicles and its role in providing the infrastructure
which will allow owners to charge these vehicles in public.
1 The Carbon Plan: Delivering our low carbon future,
HM Government, December 2011 Back
2
Ev 46 para 3 Back
3
Ev 46 para 4, Carbon Plan Back
4
Committee on Climate Change, http://www.theccc.org.uk/sectors/surface-transport Back
5
Ev 65 Back
6
Committee on Climate Change, http://www.theccc.org.uk/carbon-budgets/4th-carbon-budget-path-to-2030
Back
7
Carbon Plan p4 Back
8
Meeting Carbon Budgets - 2012 Progress Report to Parliament, Committee
on Climate Change, June 2012, p162 Back
9
Ev 46 para 5 Back
10
Ev 46 para 6 Back
11
Ev w23 para 1 Back
12
Ev w12 para 2 Back
13
Carbon Plan 2011, p47 Back
14
Making the Connection, The Plug-In Vehicle Infrastructure Strategy,
OLEV, June 2011 p13 Back
15
Making the Connection p14 Back
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