TfL Carbon Footprint
Request ID: FOI-0521-2021
Date published: 10 July 2020
You asked
I am looking for data on the carbon footprint of all TFL modes of transport. For example, grams/kg of CO2 produced per km/mile for busses, tubes, dlr, overground etc. Ideally I would like this data as granular as possible, for example if certain busses use lower emission vehicles compared to others (e.g. if the 44 was complete electric but the 345 was hybrid), and whether the footprint is different between underground lines (for example, is the footprint per km on the district line lower than the footprint per km on the central line?)
If you have a standard/average value per passenger that would be useful, however if you have data more granular than this that would also be preferable. For example, the g CO2/km on the underground will probably be lower during rush hour than it would be at 2am on the night tube as less people would be travelling. Essentially we’d be looking for data on how busy different modes of transport are at different times of the week, so we can estimate a carbon footprint for a journey more accurately. If you have any information on load factors (how full a vehicle is) for all TFL modes that would be great!
We answered
Our Ref: FOI-0521-2021
Thank you for your request received on 30 June 2020 asking for information about carbon emissions.
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require.
We hold data on the carbon emissions of the majority of the services TfL directly operates, and reports on these per passenger km in our annual Health Safety and Environment report, which is available on our website:
https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/health-safety-and-environment
We also have data on car and taxi CO2 emissions in London as part of the London Atmospheric Emissions Inventory:
https://data.london.gov.uk/dataset/london-atmospheric-emissions-inventory-2013
Please note that these values are average and indicative values only and provide a high level comparison between modes. The carbon emissions associated with individual road journeys will depend on a number of factors such as vehicle model, level of traffic, average speed, etc. Emissions related to rail services will also vary depending on the exact journey being made, and factors such as train loading. Because of this variability of emissions for specific journeys there are no plans to include carbon emissions data on the TfL Journey Planner.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for some reason, please feel free to contact me.
Please note, the Government has announced a series of measures to tackle the coronavirus. It is essential for London, that we continue to provide a safe transport network for essential journeys.
In current circumstances, we are not able to answer requests readily and we ask that you please do not make a request to us at present.
Answering requests will require the use of limited resources and the attention of staff who could be supporting other essential activity. In any event, please note that our response time will be affected by the current situation.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.
Yours sincerely
Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London
[email protected]
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