Britain's railways could remove diesel-only passenger trains from the network and make substantial progress towards decarbonising their operations by 2040, according to leading rail experts in sustainability and rolling stock.
In February 2018, the then Rail Minister Jo Johnson issued a challenge to decarbonise the railways and remove diesel-only trains by 2040. An initial report by the Rail Industry Decarbonisation Task Force and rail body RSSB – welcomed today by government - is the first step to addressing this challenge, and has found that while the target is achievable, there is no single “silver bullet” solution.
The research confirms that the railways can continue to offer one of the lowest-carbon transport options for passengers and freight, and provides some early insights into the way the issue should be tackled, focussing on the technologies that will support decarbonisation.
A final report in late spring 2019 will outline the strategy with an economic appraisal and a road map of options towards challenging carbon reduction targets.
Rail experts are agreed that additional electrification on intensively-used routes, where it is cost-effective and appropriate, will continue to offer key benefits, but that it must be balanced with the disruption and delays it can cause to passengers. They also identified a need to reach a consensus on the local, targeted roles that newer, emerging traction options such as hybrid trains, battery, and hydrogen could play.
The report suggests it’s possible to remove diesel-only trains for passenger trains, but not yet for freight, where new research is currently looking at better options. According to experts, only diesel offers the power and ‘go anywhere’ flexibility for freight to operate on one of the world’s most crowded networks.
