Abstract:
Low carbon vehicles
Professor Julia King CBE FREng
Vice-Chancellor, Aston University, Birmingham, UK
To be confident of achieving less than a 1% chance of a 4o rise in temperature, and a strong probability of no more than 2o, by 2100, we need to reduce CO2 emissions per head to around 2 tonnes per annum by 2050. If you drive a car emitting 140g/km of CO2 a distance of 15,000km per annum today, that’s just over 2 tonnes. The average life of a car is around 12 years; 2050 may sound a long time away, but in car lifetimes it is less than 3.5.
In developed countries transport is the second largest emitter of CO2, after power generation. Emissions from transport continue to grow - the implementation of new technology is not keeping up with growth in distance travelled. Light vehicles are dominant; in the UK for example, cars and vans account for almost 70% of total CO2 from transport.
So if we are to maintain the levels of personal mobility which have supported our comfortable lifestyles and our economic prosperity in Europe, we must reduce vehicle emissions as a matter of urgency.
Drawing on the conclusions of the King Review of low carbon cars [1], and the work of the UK’s Committee on Climate Change [2], the presentation will cover vehicle technology options, consumer behaviour and potential scenarios for new technology introduction and their implications, for example for power generation and distribution. It will also touch on the factors inhibiting change and potential ways to address these through policy.
1 The King Review of Low Carbon Cars, Part 1 October 2007; Part 2 March 2008 www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/king
2 Building a low-carbon economy – the UK’s contribution to tackling climate change. The Committee on Climate Change December 2008