Transport Climate Action Directory

The Transport Climate Action Directory allows you to translate your decarbonisation ambitions into actions to achieve your climate objectives.

Over 80 mitigation measures with the evidence to assess their effectiveness are included. Each contains information on CO2 emissions impacts, costs, co-benefits and other considerations. Use the filters to refine your requirements.

84 measures found

Urban

Education and awareness raising

Awareness campaigns

Public awareness campaigns in transport typically aim to encourage the public to shift away from personal motorised travel to public transport, walking or cycling (however, other types of awareness campaigns can also be possible – e.g. to encourage the uptake of low-carbon vehicles). The target group of a campaign can include the population of a city, a specific neighbourhood, or those living near a specific public transport line or other mobility service. Other groups (e.g. the elderly or commu

Education and awareness raising
Rail
Road
Urban

Public transport information

Public transport (PT) information allows travellers to plan their trips in advance or “on the go”. In many cities, PT information – including routes and timetables – is freely available through online services. Real-time travel information is increasingly commonplace and is based on vehicle-tracking devices that transmit their positioning data – typically via GPS – to a central server. Estimates of the vehicles’ arrival times at transport stops are available at stations, on websites and via phon

Education and awareness raising
Rail
Road
Urban

Economic

Congestion pricing

Congestion pricing sets a charge for the use of (certain) urban roads. By imposing a cost on driving on a road, it aims to reduce congestion, lower adverse environmental impacts of traffic and cut the time lost in traffic. Congestion pricing can be variable, with charges depending on the time of day or length of use. It can also be dynamic, when charges are set depending on traffic levels as monitored in real time. Charges can also be levied for specific city zones, as in London; on certain road

Economic
Road
Urban

Green public procurement

With green procurement, public authorities and/or companies take sustainability issues into account when tendering for goods and services. In the transport sector, green procurement generally refers to accounting for the environmental efficiency of vehicles when making vehicle purchase/lease decisions. Green public procurement can directly target vehicle CO2 emissions and/or other environmental impacts of vehicles (local pollutants, for example). Public procurement includes both (a) transitionin

Economic
Road
Urban

Parking pricing

Every private car trip requires parking at its origin and destination. Parking pricing typically means charging motorists for the use of parking facilities. It can apply to commuter, non-commuter and residential parking. Parking pricing can significantly impact the cost of car ownership and use. The impact is greater for relatively shorter trips as the cost of parking does not vary with distance travelled. Parking pricing policies can affect travel demand for private car trips by reducing that d

Economic
Road
Urban

Pricing measures for urban logistics

Pricing measures for urban logistics set a price for a certain piece of road or for entering a zone, and can be variable over the course of a day (e.g. congestion charging). They are aimed at reducing congestion and emissions. Different charges can be applied for different vehicle types, thus encouraging the use of more environmentally friendly vehicles. Measures that define the use of revenues from pricing measures are also part of a pricing policy. If revenues are recycled in the wrong way (al

Economic
Road
Urban

Road charging and tolls

Road pricing approaches charge users for use of road infrastructure (motorways, bridges, tunnels, or other infrastructure). They are widely used to fund transport infrastructure and to manage demand for private vehicle-based road transport. There are many options for setting road pricing. It can be a distance-based charge (e.g. a toll road, defined by the length of the road), and/or time-based (i.e. vary according to when the infrastructure is being used). Charges may also vary depending on th

Economic
Road
Urban
National

Infrastructure

Bus rapid transit network

A bus rapid transit (BRT) system is a bus system with high speed, capacity, punctuality and operating flexibility. Typically, buses in BRT systems operate in exclusive bus lanes and are supported by adequate intelligent transportation system (ITS) infrastructure. BRT systems with a high level of service are frequently characterised by distinctive, easy-to-board buses that run via bus-only roads/corridors and that are completely separated from other traffic; BRT stations are equipped with off-v

Infrastructure
Road
Urban

Enhanced bus networks

Improving a bus network’s layout and timetables can mitigate carbon emissions in several ways. It can: - Attract riders from more polluting modes, namely cars. - Reduce the need for the construction of transport infrastructure. - Minimise bus fleet requirements. - Eliminate inefficient bus operations. Planners can apply various established algorithms and heuristics to identify network designs that improve operations while balancing user and operator costs. To also minimise carbon emissions, pl

Infrastructure
Road
Urban

Enhanced signalling

Transport agencies have long relied on signals, including traffic lights, ramp meters and roadside displays, to manage traffic flow. A range of advanced signalling solutions can help policymakers to improve the sustainability of transport systems. More specifically, signalling can improve the efficiency and convenience of sustainable transport modes like public transport and active modes compared to private motorised vehicles. For example, signalling can reduce the need to break and accelerate f

Infrastructure
Road
Urban

Enhanced urban rail infrastructure

Urban rail systems can come in different forms: - Heavy commuter rail lines either run on dedicated high-capacity tracks and infrastructure or share the same tracks with other rail services. - Metro systems are completely segregated from other traffic and provide high frequencies and capacity; they generally have extensive segments either underground or elevated in viaducts. - Light rail systems typically run on the surface, sometimes including elevated platforms or underground sections; somet

Infrastructure
Rail
Urban

Express lanes / public transport priority

Delays induced by the operation of traffic signals typically account for 10% to 25% of the total travel time of buses. This has an impact on the quality of the service for users, may lead to lower public transport ridership, and has impact on fuel consumption and related emissions of public transit services. The creation of bus lanes (or express lanes) and the implementation of transit signal priority (TSP) for buses can enhance their efficiency and travel times. With TSP, buses are equipped wit

Infrastructure
Road
Urban

Integrated ticketing

Integrated ticketing facilitates public transport transfers across different modes, operators or geographic zones. Within this broad definition, it can take a number of forms, including a common payment mechanism, a single ticket on different operator services, a single ticket across different modes or combinations of these elements. Integrated ticketing often takes form as an electronic “smart ticket”. Benefits to users include ease of access and the ability to treat a public transport system

Infrastructure
Rail
Road
Urban

Land-use planning in urban areas

Land-use planning influences the way cities are constructed and will develop further over time. It defines the "Five Ds" of a city, of which the first three are the most studied in terms of impact on travel behaviour: density (of population and/or jobs), diversity (mix of uses), design (pedestrian quality, street network density, etc), distance to transit and destination. Public authorities can choose to promote different types of local development, the two extremes being urban sprawl (whereby d

Infrastructure
Rail
Road
Urban

Park and ride facilities

Park and ride (P&R) facilities allow customers to park their vehicles on the edge of dense urban areas and use public transport (PT) – such as (light) rail or shuttle buses – to reach their destination in the city centre. P&R facilities are typically developed to relieve small towns from congestion. P&R facilities are often offered to users free of charge or at very low cost.

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Smooth driving: from eco-driving to automated vehicles

Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) technologies can provide drivers with real-time feedback and directly control vehicle speed to improve traffic flow and reduce the incidence and severity of collisions. These technologies can also help reduce carbon emissions, especially when combined with speed management measures and reduce congestion. Smooth driving applications are more or less market-ready. Commercially available applications include: - Eco-driving systems involve either providing real-

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Support low-carbon fuel infrastructure

Low-carbon fuels for transport are transport fuels/energy vectors with low well-to-wheel carbon emissions. Key examples include liquid fuels (e.g. biofuels or synthetic and paraffinic fuels from renewable origin), gaseous fuels (e.g. renewable methane, ammonia and hydrogen) and electricity. Low-carbon liquid fuels may or may not be suitable for blending with petroleum fuels and use in existing vehicles. In their blendable (drop-in) form, they rely on existing fuel distribution infrastructure and

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Regulatory

Parking regulation

Car-parking policy is essential for influencing travel behaviour. Parking regulation can impact traffic, accessibility to destinations and land use, and can generate revenues for the authority. Parking regulation includes all forms of parking measures intended to control the availability or price of parking spaces. It controls who, when and how long vehicles may park at a particular location. It typically includes time restrictions, user restrictions (e.g. parking only for residents or the disa

Regulatory
Road
Urban

Traffic management: speed limitations

Traffic calming aims to reduce the dominance and speed of motor vehicles. It employs a variety of techniques to cut vehicle speeds to improve safety and environmental quality in urban areas. Usually, traffic calming applies as an area-wide measure. If applied only to a particular street, it runs the risk of pushing accidents, pollution and cut-through driving into neighbouring areas. Traffic calming originated in residential areas but is increasingly used in whole city areas. Traffic calming te

Regulatory
Road
Urban

Vehicle restriction scheme

Vehicle restriction policies in urban areas set a "cordon" blocking an area – usually the city centre – for a subset of the vehicle fleet for specific time periods, to reduce congestion, increase traffic speeds and/or reduce pollution. Vehicle restriction policies may apply only during peak traffic periods or for a full day: a specific day or specific days during a week. Sometimes, they may be implemented only on days that are identified as "critical" from an environmental perspective. Vehicle

Regulatory
Road
Urban

Innovation / R&D

Bike sharing

Bike sharing systems provide bike stations/docks – where bicycles are available for the public to rent – over a certain geographical area. The most common systems allow individuals to either rent a bike for a single trip or subscribe to a monthly/annual pass. With a pass, subscribers can typically take out a bike as often as they wish as long as they return it within a certain period (often 30 minutes). Additional time is often charged extra. Bikes can typically be returned at any station, irres

Innovation / R&D
Rail
Urban

Car sharing

Car-sharing schemes are a type of car rental where members of the scheme can rent cars for short periods of time. In fixed-location schemes, cars are taken from, and returned to, fixed locations or stations. Depending on the design of the system, the point of return of the car may or may not differ from the point where the car was taken. In free-flow schemes, the organisation operating the car sharing-scheme has an agreement with the municipality that allows users to park their rental car at an

Innovation / R&D
Road
Urban

Mobility as a Service (MaaS)

Mobility as a Service (MaaS) is a model for supplying a wide range of passenger transport services through a single digital customer interface. In its most ambitious form, MaaS integrates different transport, information and payment services into a smooth and reliable customer experience. It can include traditional public transport, newer mobility services and demand-responsive modes, allowing multi-modal, door-to-door travel using a single platform. A fully functional MaaS platform has integra

Innovation / R&D
Rail
Road
Walking and Cycling

On-demand public transport

On-demand public transport, or demand responsive transport (DRT), is bookable public transport. It can replace the need to run a traditional fixed route and timetable, particularly during periods of low demand. DRT can replace existing routes or service previously unserved areas. Service models can vary from door-to-door transfers, to set or variable pick-up points, or be a mixture of these options.

Innovation / R&D
Road
Urban

Ridesourcing and Ride Sharing

Ridesourcing initially emerged as a disruptor of the traditional taxi industry, which was heavily regulated and featured strict limits on the number of licensed taxis in most areas. The ridesourcing model combined GPS location services with app-based booking and payment, and enabled rapid supply adjustments to respond to daily and weekly demand peaks by leveraging private vehicles on a part-time basis. These innovations led to important efficiency gains and enhanced economic welfare. In additio

Innovation / R&D
Road
Urban

Logistics

Cargo bikes for urban freight

Using cargo bikes to transport goods can reduce the environmental impact of freight transport in urban areas. Cargo bikes come in many shapes and sizes, including two, three, four-wheeled and trailer-based vehicles. These vehicles can transport various goods, from construction materials to food to retail-store provisioning (Cairns and Sloman, 2019). Cargo bikes can carry up to 500 kg, depending on the size of the cargo space and whether they are electric or not (Nürnberg, 2019). Studies have est

Logistics
Road
Walking and Cycling
Urban

Change in delivery schedules/night deliveries

Shifting urban delivery trips to off-peak times can reduce congestion and lead to more efficient freight operations. Dense urban areas typically deal with high levels of congestion during the daytime. Still, they have unused road and un(loading) space during the evening, at night or early in the morning (Sánchez-Díaz, Georén and Brolinson, 2016). During off-peak hours, lower congestion and higher availability of parking space lead to reduced delivery trip times and resulting CO2 emissions. Pilot

Logistics
Road
Urban

Combined passenger and freight flows

Integrating freight and passenger transport can increase efficiency in the freight sector. Combining passenger and freight flows generally follows two models. First, logistics providers can collaborate with public transport operators to deliver goods using their vehicles (Van Duin et al., 2019). Alternatively, logistic service providers can partner with individuals to transport goods on their regularly planned trips, removing the need for delivery trips. Both approaches can increase logistics ef

Logistics
Road
Urban

Drop-off collection points / Pick-up consolidation

Strong global growth in business-to-consumer e‑commerce has coincided with a looming challenge of efficient last-mile deliveries, particularly in cities. A promising alternative to home deliveries of goods is deliveries to pickup points, also referred to as drop-off collection points, which reduces vehicle-kilometres travelled and costs for last-mile distributions of goods. There are two main types of pickup points: 1) self-service lockers where the parcels are stored and the consumer uses an id

Logistics
Road
Urban

Electric vehicle delivery fleets

Growth in city populations and e‑commerce is contributing to emissions from urban freight. Recent improvements in battery, load and mileage capacity have made electric vehicles (EVs) a competitive alternative to internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles that can help address such challenges. The number and frequency of parcel deliveries have been increasing in cities, while the size of shipments is decreasing, creating the need for smaller vehicles delivering to more destinations. EVs can be a u

Logistics
Road
Urban

Land-use planning for freight

Urban freight activities need land for warehouses, distribution centres, and multi-modal nodes. These facilities tend to be in areas that reduce overall logistics costs, with little consideration of freight transport’s negative impacts on surrounding communities and the broader metropolitan region. In many urban areas, the unplanned growth of freight activities has led to warehousing sprawl that results in inefficient and longer freight trips (Kang, S., 2020). In Cali, Colombia, the scattered de

Logistics
Maritime
Rail
Road

Sustainable urban logistics plans

As part of broader sustainable urban mobility plans (SUMPs), governments are increasingly developing sustainable urban logistics plans (SULPs) that focus on efficiently distributing goods in cities. In European cities, SUMPs have been the leading framework guiding the transition towards sustainable mobility of people and goods (ELTIS, 2019). There is a growing need for distinct logistics-focused plans due to the excessive congestion and environmental impacts of goods movement in cities and the i

Logistics
All Transport
Rail
Road

National

Education and awareness raising

Environmental labelling of vessels and emission reporting

Environmental labelling schemes aim to encourage a change in supplier and consumer behaviour using market signals without resorting to explicit controls and regulation regarding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and other environmental concerns (Hermann et al., 2015). The schemes assign a rating or label to shipping companies or vessels and are meant to highlight 'greener' options for transporting goods. These labels can turn environmental performance into a competitive advantage. Companies may be

Education and awareness raising
Maritime
National
International

Vehicle and fuel labelling

Vehicle fuel-efficiency labelling (VFEL) is one of the measures designed to improve the fuel efficiency of transport fleets. VFEL has been introduced by various economies throughout the world since 1978. It may have been introduced as either voluntary (e.g. Brazil, Canada) or mandatory (e.g. China, Germany, United States) measure. The principle behind VFEL is to raise consciousness in the general public about the fuel efficiency of the vehicles on sale, based on the assumption that properly info

Education and awareness raising
Road
National

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Voluntary associations of businesses can have the aim of increasing logistic efficiency and reducing emissions. Such programs tend to be initiated by government agencies, but the main players are private companies. Emission reductions are achieved through the sharing of best practices, uniform tracking and accounting of fuel consumption and emissions, and increases in efficiency. They foster the adoption of specific measures such as eco-driving or vehicle improvements (e.g. aerodynamic retrofits

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime

Economic

Abolish fossil fuel tax exemptions for maritime transport

The maritime sector enjoys waivers from fuel taxation in the vast majority of markets. The IMF (2021) categorises energy taxes below efficient taxation levels as post-tax subsidies. An efficient taxation level would correspond with tax rates applicable to other consumer products or be high enough to internalise negative externalities from fuel use, including greenhouse gas emissions. Taxation rates for transport fuels undercut efficient levels in many markets. This can be, for example, low taxes

Economic
Maritime
National
International

Aviation fuel tax

Carbon and fuel taxes are levied on the use of carbohydrate-based fuels or the emissions resulting from fuel burn. The main difference between these taxes is whether they are applied per tonne of CO2 emitted or per litre of fuel used. In practice, however, carbon taxes are often administered in the same way as excise fuel taxes: they are based on common commercial units (e.g. litres for liquid fuels such as jet fuel) rather than carbon content or CO2 emissions. One form of tax does not exclude t

Economic
Aviation
National
International

Carbon tax for road vehicles

A carbon tax affects travel cost and hence leads to changes in passenger demand, mode choice and road network traffic flow. The two common ways to implement a carbon tax are fuel taxes and cap-and-trade systems that allocate CO2 emission permits to drivers, thus putting a price on such emissions. Most current carbon price signals in the road sector are due to fuel excise taxes. Economically similar to carbon taxes, they set an effective carbon price that may be as high as EUR 300 per tonne of CO

Economic
Road
National

Environmentally differentiated port pricing

Port fees can be differentiated on the basis of vessels’ environmental performance. For example, if port fees were differentiated on the basis of emissions from vessels, lower emissions would translate into discounts on port fees. Although various ports have introduced green port discounts for a selected group of clean ships, few ports apply full environmentally differentiated port pricing to both dirty and clean ships. The decision to implement such arrangements is usually taken by port author

Economic
Maritime
National

Feebates

Feebate (or "bonus-malus") systems work by taxing inefficient vehicles and subsidising efficient vehicles at the point of sale, typically collecting just enough net revenue to cover implementation costs. Feebates encourage buyers to buy more efficient vehicles. Fees or rebates apply directly at the point of sale and provide an immediate tangible benefit (or dis-benefit). Feebate systems target car buyers and encourage vehicle manufacturers to improve the fuel efficiency of even their most effici

Economic
Road
National

Financial instruments to support decarbonisation

Reducing investment risks is important for fostering investment in the development of solutions for enhancing energy efficiency and reducing the carbon intensity of fuels or other energy carriers used in transport. Risk mitigation is particularly relevant for technologies that face “chicken-and-egg” issues related to the need to deploy new vehicle and refuelling infrastructure jointly. A number of financial measures involve the public sector in taking risks that would otherwise need to be borne

Economic
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Road charging and tolls

Economic
Road
Urban
National

Infrastructure

Electric road systems

One means of decarbonising road freight transport is electrification of goods vehicles, provided the carbon intensity of electricity generation drops in line with the energy sector’s renewable energy targets. However, given the weight of heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs), their electrification is challenging. With today’s technology, battery systems delivering the required power and driving range would be so large and heavy as to significantly reduce vehicles’ payload and render their operation ineffic

Infrastructure
Road
National

Electrification of rail

Trains use locomotives or railcars that convert energy into motion to pull or push cars along tracks. Many fuel sources have been used to power the engines, but today most train engines use electricity or diesel. Electric trains have no direct (tailpipe or tank-to-wheel) CO2 emissions, whereas diesel trains produce CO2 and other pollutants through fuel burn. Electric trains may, however, be the source of so-called upstream or well-to-tank emissions (i.e. stemming from electricity generation and

Infrastructure
Rail
National

Enhanced and expanded rail for freight

Railways are among the most efficient and least carbon-intensive transport modes to move surface freight, particularly compared with road and inland waterways. Hence, shifting freight from road to rail is potentially one of the best ways to decarbonise freight transport, especially considering the major technical, operational and commercial challenges of obtaining zero-tailpipe-emission trucks. Electrified railways are a mature technology, in widespread use, with a century of existence. Rail ha

Infrastructure
Rail
National
International

Enhanced cycle provision

Well connected, high quality cycling infrastructure plays a significant role in encouraging mode shift to cycling from driving. Car trips less than 5km are considered 'switchable' to cycling in the literature. According to the literature, shorter car trips are often considered 'switchable' to cycling. While most successful in urban areas with a high density of short trips, cycling can play a strong role in non-urban areas especially when combined with other sustainable modes. Studies have found

Infrastructure
Road
National

Enhanced non-urban passenger rail infrastructure

Enhancing non-urban passenger rail infrastructure may involve improvements to existing infrastructure or building new infrastructure. Improvements may range from electrifying existing lines to upgrading lines to high-speed rail corridors allowing speeds over 200 km/h. Currently, the most developed non-urban passenger networks are in Asia and Europe. Providing enhanced/expanded rail infrastructure may aim to: - Provide an attractive and more sustainable travel alternative. - Cover unmet travel

Infrastructure
Rail
National

Ground operations emissions reduction

Direct airport emissions and those under airport control represent only about 5% of all aviation emissions. Still, airport operators have made sustained efforts to reduce their CO2 emissions from aircraft operations on the ground. Decarbonising airports is arguably easier than decarbonising aircraft operations, but airport operators have an important role in driving industry-wide climate action. The main measures that airports can take to improve efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions include: -

Infrastructure
Aviation
National

Intelligent Transport Systems (freight) / Capacity increases in rail by automatisation and digitalisation

The development of intelligent transport systems (ITS) aims to provide better quality, relevant, dynamic and real-time, automatically collected data on the performance of transport systems, including technical, operational and commercial parameters. These data can be processed and used to improve the overall transport system management and performance and can contribute to emissions reduction efforts. Railway digitalisation involves the development of several technologies, which can be classifie

Infrastructure
Logistics
Rail
National

Multimodal freight interfaces

Multimodal freight interfaces are the nodes in the logistic chain where shipped goods are transferred between different modes of transport. Improving these interfaces will enable maximising the efficiency of operations; for example, accelerating the transfer of containers or the swapping of bodies between modes reduces the transit time associated with intermodal transport. Improving the interfaces can also help increase capacity, lower costs, increase reliability, employ the right mode for the r

Infrastructure
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Park and ride facilities

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Procurement of alternatively-powered rolling stock (hydrogen or battery)

Shifting passenger- and freight-transport activities to rail can reduce CO2 emissions given the low carbon intensity of rail operations. However, further CO2 emissions reductions are feasible by employing truly carbon-neutral rail technologies. Electrification has been highlighted as a potential way forward, but electrification itself can carry high front-end infrastructure costs. The CO2 reduction potential of electrified rail lines is also highly dependent on the energy mix of the territory it

Infrastructure
Rail
National

Promoting inland waterways

Transport by inland waterways can be a cleaner, and sometimes cheaper, alternative for freight than transport by roads. In certain contexts, it is even more energy efficient than railways, another clean alternative for freight. Despite this, however, modal shares of inland waterways are generally smaller than for roads and railways. Governments can see in the promotion of this mode a tool for meeting greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation goals. Ultimately, the decarbonisation potential of this mode w

Infrastructure
Maritime
National

Smooth driving: from eco-driving to automated vehicles

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Support bunkering infrastructure for alternative fuels

Ships are regularly required to take in fuels for their propulsion. This process is called bunkering. Bunkering takes place in ports either from on-site facilities to the ship, from ship to ship (via bunkering vessels) or from truck to ship. Low greenhouse gas (GHG) emission fuels, or alternative fuels, are transport fuels or energy vectors with a low well-to-wheel GHG emission balance compared to traditional fuels. As various ports have bunker facilities for traditional fuels, a transition to a

Infrastructure
Maritime
National

Support low-carbon fuel infrastructure

Infrastructure
Road
Urban
National

Support on-shore power and electric charging facilities in ports

Shoreside power, also known as onshore power or cold ironing, is a system of power supply that allows ships to plug into electrical power at the berth while keeping their main and auxiliary engines that generate power and use marine gasoil switched off. The switching-off of these engines eliminates the emissions and air pollution that result from their running. Shoreside power can be used by vessels for various functions, such as lighting, ventilation, communication, cargo pumps and other critic

Infrastructure
Maritime
National

Regulatory

Company car taxation, business travel and teleworking incentives

Work-related trips make up a significant portion of daily travel demand and thus have a significant impact on carbon emissions, congestion and air quality. Company car benefits are associated with increases in transport demand, car ownership and use of heavier vehicles. Ending company car benefits or increasing taxes on these “in-kind” benefits could significantly reduce emissions from passenger vehicles and prompt behaviour change in employees who no longer have “free” access to a private vehi

Regulatory
Road
National

Electric vehicle readiness requirements for new or refurbished buildings

Easy access to charging infrastructure has been shown to have an impact on consumers’ willingness to purchase an electric vehicle (EV). An increasing number of countries have legislated the installation of EV charging infrastructure for new or renovated buildings to meet the projected increasing EV demand. EV readiness requirements refer to the provision of necessary conduits and wiring to parking spaces, enabling chargers to be installed subsequently. It ensures that new and renovated buildings

Regulatory
Road
National

Fuel blending mandate

Mandatory blending of renewable and/or low-carbon fuels/energy vectors is a regulatory policy instrument intended to ensure that there is a sustained market demand for these fuels. The scope of application of blending mandates has been primarily focused on liquid fuels, but these policy instruments are also relevant for gaseous fuels. Fuel blending mandates do not apply to electricity. Being a regulatory mechanism, mandatory blending has an inherent capacity to ensure that scale of renewable an

Regulatory
Aviation
Maritime
Road

Fuel certification and standardisation based on carbon intensity

Certifying and standardising fuels based on their carbon intensity - amongst other sustainability criteria - helps to navigate the different decarbonisation measures for fuel producers and suppliers. It also helps identify the least carbon-intensive fuels. Policies must lead to effective GHG emission reductions across the life-cycle of energy production and use. This includes blending mandates and instruments that regulate the carbon intensity of energy carriers on a life-cycle basis and aim to

Regulatory
All Transport
Aviation
Maritime

Fuel quality/Low-carbon fuel standard

A low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) is a market-based policy mechanism that aims to reduce the life-cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions intensity of transportation fuels/energy vectors (typically gasoline, diesel oil and jet kerosene). Creating LCFSs involves defining progressively tightened regulatory thresholds or limits for the average life-cycle (i.e. including production, distribution and use) GHG emissions intensity of transport fuels/energy vectors distributed by regulated parties (i.e. f

Regulatory
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Green public procurement in shipping

Green procurement in transport means the inclusion of requirements relating to low- or zero-emission transport in public procurement processes. Following such an approach allows governments to support decarbonisation by using their purchasing power to choose assets, services and works that have a comparatively lower environmental impact. In the case of shipping, green public procurement of domestic shipping services (or works/assets) can have important spillover effects for international sea tra

Regulatory
Maritime
National

High capacity vehicles

The weight and dimensions of road freight vehicles are nationally regulated and vary across countries. In most countries, heavy goods vehicles are considered to be those weighing more than either 3.5 or 4.5 tonnes. High-capacity vehicles (HCVs) are vehicles that exceed the general weight and dimension limitations set by national regulations and are usually operated within limited geographical areas or on specific routes under special provisions. Differing regulations across countries imply that

Regulatory
Road
National
International

Internal combustion engine and diesel bans

. Vehicle bans can be linked to the type of fuel used (diesel, gasoline, etc.), the type of engine, the type of vehicle (light-duty, heavy-duty) or the age of the vehicle. A ban can be applied to the sale or use of vehicles (for driving or parking) or the sale of fuel based on these categories for a defined region or for certain times of the day or days of the week. It is recommended to prepare legislation and enforcement mechanisms to ensure that bans are followed. The timing and

Regulatory
Road
National

Low- and zero-emission vehicle mandates

Governments can require that car and vehicle makers produce and sell a minimum percentage of Low- and Zero- (tailpipe) Emission Vehicles (LZEVs) through mandates. These mandates aim to ensure that investments to manufacture and market LZEV technologies are mobilised to ramp up production volumes more rapidly, triggering economies of scale and decreasing technology costs. Mandates typically become more stringent over time and may be adapted as technologies evolve. Policy designs of mandates can a

Regulatory
Road
National

Low-carbon fuel life-cycle evaluation for shipping

Shipping can use several fuels types, and the industry is exploring alternatives to conventional heavy fuels that can help the sector decarbonise. The assessment method of fuels significantly impacts whether they are considered “low carbon”. Life-cycle assessment accounts for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions at all stages of the fuels’ production and consumption, including the emissions of the energy used to produce and deliver the fuel, in addition to the direct emissions from the vehicle or vess

Regulatory
Maritime
National
International

National action plans for maritime transport

National action plans (NAPs) are voluntary-based national strategies that support and complement international efforts for decarbonising shipping activity both from a regulatory as well as from a technology development and uptake perspective. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) adopted in November 2020 a resolution (MEPC. 327(75)) encouraging member states to develop and submit NAPs to address GHG emissions from ships. The actual decarbonisation impact of NAPs will depend on the measur

Regulatory
Maritime
National

Regulate short-lived pollutants in maritime transport

Black carbon (BC) and methane (CH4) are known as ‘short-lived’ climate pollutants because they last less time in the atmosphere compared with CO2. However, on a pound-for-pound basis, they have a far more powerful climate-warming effect than CO2. CH4 is 30 times more powerful than CO2 for every kilogram emitted based on its 100-year global warming potential (GWP100). The effects of BC are even greater, though they are dependent on the location of the emissions and atmospheric feedback effects (

Regulatory
Maritime
National
International

Restricted access to zones

Access regulation zones are frequently called low emission zones (LEZs) or environmental zones. An LEZ is a defined area that can be entered only by vehicles meeting certain emissions criteria or standards. Depending on the design and objective of the zone, vehicles that are prohibited are typically relatively more polluting vehicles. The main objective of such zones in urban areas is often the reduction of pollutant emissions, such as particulate matter (PM). LEZs should be adjusted over time t

Regulatory
Road
National

Setting standards and targets for promoting charging infrastructure

Local, national and international authorities have been setting targets and standards for increasing the amount of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles. Targets refer to the setting of goals on deployment of charging infrastructure, e.g. having a set amount of charging infrastructure by a given year. Targets allow national governments to earmark budget streams for the increase of required infrastructure. These funds can, for instance, be aimed at allowing city authorities to increase th

Regulatory
Road
National

Sustainable finance regulations

It is important to steer investments towards solutions that achieve economic, climate and sustainability goals. However, to do so, regulators must reduce the risks of exposure to climate change, environmental and social sustainability impacts and climate and sustainability policy. The Financial Stability Board's Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures established recommendations that identified two types of risks: physical and transitional. Physical risks result in direct damage to

Regulatory
All Transport
National
International

Vehicle efficiency standards

Mandatory vehicle-efficiency standards require newly registered vehicles to emit less tailpipe CO2 emissions than a specified threshold value (usually specified in gCO2/km or similar) by a certain target date. Alternatively, such standards may be expressed as fuel economy standards that require vehicles to surpass a certain fuel-efficiency value (usually provided in miles/gallon of fuel or similar). A vehicle’s tailpipe CO2 emissions and fuel consumption are typically assessed in standardised la

Regulatory
Road
National

Vehicle weight standards

Vehicle weight standards can encourage vehicle manufacturers to produce lighter cars. Because lighter cars are more energy-efficient, they cause less CO2 emissions than heavier alternatives. Vehicle weight reductions can be achieved by, for example, re-designing or downsizing the vehicle, avoiding non-essential or luxury vehicle outfits and/or using lightweight materials. Vehicle weight standards have not yet been introduced anywhere around the globe. Instead of weight standards, other regulato

Regulatory
Road
National

Vessel scrappage and retrofit schemes

The average life of a vessel is approximately 25 years. So even if zero-emission ships were readily available as a cost-competitive alternative on the market right now, their share of the total vessel fleet would not become significant until some time in the distant future, provided that ships are not retrofitted. Decarbonising shipping will therefore depend a lot on the level of scrappage or early retirement of old vessels, influencing the speed of uptake of low- or zero-emission ships and the

Regulatory
Maritime
National

Innovation / R&D

Freight transport: asset sharing and digital platform

Sharing assets (information flows, vehicles or warehouses) can promote efficiency in resource management for logistics activities. One individual enterprise, or several of them, can benefit from the sharing of assets. Information and communications technologies (ICTs) have facilitated asset sharing by decreasing information costs and providing platforms where various actors can share and trade their assets. From an environmental point of view, sharing assets can increase logistic efficiencies,

Innovation / R&D
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Rural Mobility as a Service (MaaS)

Mobility as a service (MaaS) is a model for supplying a wide range of passenger transport services through a single, digital customer interface. In its most ambitious form, it integrates different transport, information and payment services into a smooth and reliable customer experience. It includes traditional public transport, newer mobility services and booking demand-responsive modes, allowing door-to-door travel using a single interface or point of contact. In rural settings, MaaS can requi

Innovation / R&D
Road
National

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime

Logistics

Intelligent Transport Systems (freight) / Capacity increases in rail by automatisation and digitalisation

Infrastructure
Logistics
Rail
National

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime

International

Education and awareness raising

Carbon labelling for flights

Carbon labels on flights are a specific form of eco-labelling. Carbon labels clearly show the carbon footprint of products to 'nudge' people into changing consumption habits. They are a soft policy measure that encourages people to choose the itinerary with the lowest carbon footprint when purchasing a flight, without actively limiting consumer choices. Studies show significant differences in emissions for flights between the same destinations. Carbon labels give visibility to these differences

Education and awareness raising
Aviation
International

Enhance technical co-operation and capacity building in maritime transport

Despite the common challenge of reaching the Paris Agreement climate goals, countries are at different stages of development with different levels of capability. Most developing countries face significant capacity challenges that undermine their ability to achieve their intended climate actions. The Paris Agreement acknowledges technical co-operation and capacity building as a fundamental prerequisite to enable governments and stakeholders to mitigate emissions and adapt to climate change. Tech

Education and awareness raising
Maritime
International

Environmental labelling of vessels and emission reporting

Education and awareness raising
Maritime
National
International

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime

Economic

Abolish fossil fuel tax exemptions for maritime transport

Economic
Maritime
National
International

Aviation fuel tax

Economic
Aviation
National
International

Carbon offsetting (aviation)

Carbon offsetting is a market-based mechanism whereby CO2 emissions in one place are compensated by a reduction in emissions elsewhere. These emissions reductions are financed by the sale of carbon offsets or credits by emissions-reducing entities to entities wishing to offset their emissions. Emissions reduction units – usually equal to 1 tonne (t) of CO2 or CO2 equivalent – are traded on compliance or voluntary markets. Compliance markets supply parties under regulated schemes (e.g. the Kyoto

Economic
Aviation
International

Carbon pricing for international shipping

A carbon price for shipping internalises negative externalities from carbon emissions and helps reduce the price gap between conventional and more sustainable fuels. Revenue from carbon pricing could fund further research and development in green shipping or ship retrofitting. It could also help mitigate the adverse impact of decarbonisation on trade in the least developed countries and small island developing states. In discussions at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), carbon pricin

Economic
Maritime
International

Conditionalities in subsidies or tax subsidies in maritime transport

Subsidies can encourage environmentally friendly efforts in the maritime sector. They can take the form of direct payments, forgone tax revenue, loan guarantees and induced transfers. Current environment subsidies in the maritime sector include grants for green shipping, conversion to LNG, LNG bunkering and loans for environment-friendly innovations. Most countries grant tax exemptions to the shipping sector, e.g. for ship fuel. These largely run counter to GHG emission reduction objectives. In

Economic
Maritime
International

Emissions trading (aviation)

An emissions trading system (ETS) or cap-and-trade system is a carbon pricing mechanism for reducing CO2 emissions that can be applied to aviation. Unlike a direct carbon tax, where the unit price of CO2 is fixed, under an emissions trading scheme the price per tonne of CO2 varies. The overall amount of emissions is fixed for a given period of time (e.g. annually). Entities are allocated a set amount of CO2 emissions allowances, or quotas, and trade emissions with one another: those able to redu

Economic
Aviation
International

Financial instruments to support decarbonisation

Economic
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Infrastructure

Enhanced and expanded rail for freight

Infrastructure
Rail
National
International

Intelligent Transport Systems (freight) / Capacity increases in rail by automatisation and digitalisation

Infrastructure
Logistics
Rail
National

Multimodal freight interfaces

Infrastructure
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Regulatory

Fuel certification and standardisation based on carbon intensity

Regulatory
All Transport
Aviation
Maritime

Fuel quality/Low-carbon fuel standard

Regulatory
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

High capacity vehicles

Regulatory
Road
National
International

Low-carbon fuel life-cycle evaluation for shipping

Regulatory
Maritime
National
International

Regulate short-lived pollutants in maritime transport

Regulatory
Maritime
National
International

Regulations to improve energy efficiency of ships

One of the ways to reduce GHG emissions is to reduce the energy needed for the same transport activity – in other words, the energy efficiency of a fleet. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) has developed regulation to improve the energy efficiency of new ships. This has taken the form of the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI), which was established in 2011 and applies to all ships built from 2013 onwards. It sets a mandatory minimum design (i.e. technical) level for energy-efficien

Regulatory
Maritime
International

Sustainable finance regulations

Regulatory
All Transport
National
International

Vessel speed reduction

Slow steaming is the practice of reducing maritime vessel speeds. By operating ships at a speed significantly lower than their maximum speed, the required fuel is reduced. This results in reduced CO2 emissions stemming from ship operations. Different ship types benefit differently from slow steaming. There are various ways in which lower speeds can be achieved. Ship operators can have incentives to slow down as this reduces their fuel costs, in particular if fuel prices are high and freight ra

Regulatory
Maritime
International

Innovation / R&D

Freight transport: asset sharing and digital platform

Innovation / R&D
Aviation
Maritime
Rail

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime

Logistics

Intelligent Transport Systems (freight) / Capacity increases in rail by automatisation and digitalisation

Infrastructure
Logistics
Rail
National

Maritime logistics performance

Improving the logistics performance of maritime transport hinges mainly on ensuring smoother ship-port interfaces. By reducing both ship waiting times at anchorage points and handling time at berth, this facilitates the move towards just-in-time operations that will increase efficiency in the logistics chain – and thereby reduce the energy consumption of ships and related emissions. One possible way to achieve smoother ship-port interfaces is to provide advance notice of berth availability and

Logistics
Maritime
International

Voluntary programs to reduce emissions in logistics

Innovation / R&D
Education and awareness raising
Logistics
Maritime