Zemo Summit dissects transport decarbonisation

Feature

All facets of transport decarbonisation were discussed at Zemo Partnership's Summit, which took place in the heart of Westminster on 3 October 2024. As media partner, GreenFleet attended the Summit and shares its key takeaways

It’s not every day that some of the most influential voices in sustainable transport gather in one place to discuss the future of the industry.

Taking place at One Birdcage Walk in the heart of Westminster, the Zemo Partnership Summit saw speakers from across the sector come together last week.

In the welcome to the summit, Philip Sellwood CBE, chair of Zemo Partnership, and executive director Claire Haigh, said the event “couldn’t be taking place at a more important moment.”

They said this was due to average global temperatures surpassing previous records in the last year.

They added that the timing was also poignant as the new government begins to get its feet under the table, having made promises to accelerate the net zero transition. However central government can’t tackle the challenge alone.

"This is why we’ve brought together representatives of leading figures from not just the UK but from the Scottish and Welsh governments too, with sub-national transport bodies and the local government sector,” Sellwood and Haigh said.

While it is impossible to discuss everything that was covered at the comprehensive summit, we take a look at some of the key areas that were touched on.

Moving on from fossil fuels

This week marks the end of an era, as Britain’s last remaining coal-fired power station for the last time.

The last coal fire power station closed last week, marking a hopeful transition to more sustainable fuels.

As well as this, a recent survey from Climate Outreach found that nearly two thirds (65 per cent) say they support shifting energy production from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Electrification is widely accepted as an effective way to reach zero-emission transport. But there are challenges to overcome before mass adoption can be realised, especially for larger and specialist vehicles.

As Claire Haigh pointed out, it will be "decades" for all ICE vehicles to become electric, adding that renewable fuels will be needed in the meantime for an immediate reduction in emissions.

Echoing this point, Ollie Bradshaw, sustainability lead of liquid renewables at Certas Energy, discussed how alternative fuels can provide an “immediate” short-term solution for diesel and petrol vehicles to reduce emissions.

He described fuels like hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) as a “complimentary transition to decarbonisation” as they can be used in place of fossil diesel with little to no modification to engines.

Co-operation between sectors

Lord Deben, chair of the Council for Net Zero Transport, and former chair of the Climate Change Committee, highlighted the urgency to tackle the harm we are doing to the planet.

He said: “Because we know [about the climate crisis], we are responsible for what we know.”

He said that humans need to take responsibility for climate change, especially in the transport sector as there are widely accepted solutions to reducing the industry’s carbon footprint.

Deben said that “speed is of the essence” and part of the solution is co-operation with other parts of the industry.

As an example of this, back in April this year, the Welsh government contracted decarbonisation experts from Zemo Partnership to support the delivery of a strategy to decarbonise Wales’ commercial vehicle sector.  

Collaboration was a point that was raised a number of times during the event. As Philip Sellwood said: "If we don't do it together, we won't do it at all."

Taking fleets onboard

In a separate panel, Catherine Bowen commented that 60 per cent of local authorities are not engaging with fleets about where electric vehicle infrastructure should be best placed to suit their needs.

She pointed out that it's not just about the number of charging points being installed, it's about the right charging infrastructure in the right locations. As fleets are currently the biggest users of EVs, they should be consulted to make sure the infrastructure meets their requirements.

She also highlighted that rental has a very important role in the EV transition. She said: "Rental has a unique position which is often overlooked in getting people into electric vehicles." This is because drivers can experience living with an electric vehicle without the commitment of purchasing one, which is especially important if they are unsure.

Bus and coaches

Rebecca Kite, deputy regional manager for CPT, led the discussion on how to make both rural and urban bus routes more appealing to the population, as well as decarbonising the coach sector.

She said that one of the key issues facing electric buses is their range, and pointed out that coaches get no funding support to decarbonise.

Kite added that local authorities need to engage with sustainable travel solutions sooner rather than later, especially when it comes to local bus routes.

“Anything that covers a big area,” she said, “will eventually need to be a net zero vehicle.”