ACEA

Congestion Causes CO2 Emissions

Infrastructure measures have an enormous potential to reduce CO2 emissions.

01/01/2007 - Cars that are stuck in traffic jams or have to break for every traffic light simply waste fuel. Infrastructure measures have an enormous potential to reduce CO2 emissions. Reducing road congestion through a variety of measures, including better road design and adoption of intelligent traffic management technologies, is an effective means of reducing CO2.

Some examples: ACEA investigated the yearly CO2 reduction potential and costs of substituting 50% of current traffic lights with modern dynamic traffic lights, which generate an optimal traffic flow by adjusting to traffic conditions. Annual savings of 2.4 million tonnes CO2 are possible, around 16% of the aimed reduction from cars. Differences in road surface can lead to reductions in rolling resistance of up to 40%, corresponding to approximately 5% of CO2 reductions.

Japan leads the way: A recent study in Japan used road traffic information to track the impact of traffic-flow improvement on CO2 reduction. The trial studied the "Oji section" of the Tokyo Metropolitan Expressway, opened in December 2002, and found that the new road has reduced annual CO2 emissions in central Tokyo by between 22,000 and 31,000 tons. This reduction corresponds to the annual gasoline consumption of approximately 10,000 passenger cars. In its recently adopted CO2 strategy, Japan allocates 52% of the aimed CO2-reductions from cars to infrastructure measures.

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