Press releases

Arriva plc, one of Europe’s leading transport operators, today announced the target of reducing its greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint by 15 per cent, by 2012.

Most of Arriva’s GHG footprint is derived from the fuel that powers its buses and trains. This is therefore the area of greatest focus, but the company also aims to improve the carbon-efficiency of its depots and other facilities.

Most of the progress towards the company’s targets is planned to come from two main factors.

First is the use of a greater proportion of fuels which have a lower carbon impact than traditional fossil-based diesel. This is expected to account for the largest share of the overall GHG reduction up to 2012.

Second is improved fuel consumption, using technology to help drivers of trains and buses to increase operating efficiency without affecting journey times.

It is anticipated that these measures will more than offset the increased fuel consumption of newer buses and trains, which has been a side effect of improving emissions of local pollutants, and increased vehicle weights from additional safety requirements.

Alternative vehicle designs, including hybrids with which the company is carrying out trials, are expected to make a modest contribution to progress in later years.

Steve Clayton, Arriva’s group managing director – corporate affairs, said: “Public transport has a great deal to offer as a means of maintaining freedom of movement and economic prosperity, with lower overall greenhouse gas emissions than private car or airline travel can offer.  Nevertheless, for our industry, finding ways to reduce those emissions and operate even more efficiently must be part of responsible leadership.

“Our 2012 target is demanding.  Achieving a 15 per cent like-for-like GHG reduction requires us to make assumptions on the future availability of biofuels, which will depend on supporting decisions taken by governments and fuel suppliers.  We also continue to investigate other means of reducing the short-term and long-term impacts of running the services on which our communities depend.”

Notes to editors:

GHG reduction target
The target for the end of 2012 is calculated on like-for-like operations and is calculated from 2006, the first year for which the company has a reliable group-wide figure. The use of ‘like for like’ ensures the ability to track meaningful progress in the event of acquisitions or disposals, or significant franchise / contract changes.
2006 and 2007 GHG footprint

Arriva’s GHG footprint has been estimated by the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Management (ECCM) from data provided by the company.  Arriva’s 2007 operational emissions were estimated as 1,049,998 tonnes of CO2 equivalent (CO2e).  This represents an increase in absolute emissions of 3,310 tonnes CO2e (0.3 per cent) compared to 2006, and, allowing for changes in the routes run by the business, a like-for-like reduction of 0.9%.

The assessment includes bus and train fleet fuel consumption, premises energy consumption, waste disposal, company owned vehicles, and refrigerant gas losses, but not business travel.  The amount of CO2e associated with business travel is believed to be not material in the context of the group as a whole.

The emissions associated with the bus fleet accounted for the largest proportion of total emissions, with 77.8 per cent of the total.  Train fleet emissions contributed 15.7 per cent to the total, and site energy consumption four per cent.

During the assessment period Arriva used biodiesel blends in some bus and train fleets.  The reduction in emissions on a ‘tank to wheel’ basis through using biofuels has been included in the results reported in the assessment.  The upstream impacts of manufacturing mineral diesel or biodiesel have not been included in the assessment.

Alternative fuels
Arriva has a record of innovation in identifying viable low emission and renewable fuels, and putting them into service where operationally and commercially practical.
In Germany, Arriva is using biodiesel, derived from locally grown rape seed oil, for trains at our PEG and ODEG operations and at our Bils bus company.  This fuel reduces CO2 emissions by up to 90 per cent on a tank to wheel basis.
In Portugal, the company is running 240 buses on a B30 biodiesel blend – a mixture of 30 per cent biodiesel and 70 per cent mineral diesel – with a net reduction of up to 30 per cent in CO2 emissions for those vehicles, tank to wheel.

In the UK Arriva is running a trial of a B20 biodiesel blend using Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) to reduce carbon emissions by around 20 per cent net for 75 vehicles, tank to wheel.  The FAME is predominantly a mixture of sustainable soya products, along with used cooking oil and tallow.   Arriva, despite its advanced deployment of biofuels in some markets, accepts that the science and politics of biofuels have not yet developed fully and may change over time.  Public policy objectives expressed by the European Commission and the UK, German and Portuguese governments envisage increased take-up of biofuels as one measure to combat climate change, and the company has built those assumptions into its target-setting.  Any changes in such public policy objectives may cause Arriva to amend its GHG emissions reduction target.

Arriva is one of the largest transport services organisations in Europe with operations in Denmark, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Poland and the United Kingdom.  With some 40,000 employees, including share of associate companies, Arriva provides more than one billion passenger journeys every year through an extensive range of public transport services including buses, trains, commuter coaches and water buses. In the UK, the group is also engaged in bus and coach distribution.