Reducing CO2 emissions

TransPennine Express has already reduced CO2 emissions by almost 20 per cent in recent years and now vows to do even more

TransPennine Express (TPE) has now made a public commitment to significantly step up its plans to help address climate change and reduce its carbon footprint to net-zero.

The train company, which runs services across the North and into Scotland, has pledged to join the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), and will now put together a clear set of targets to map out how it will drive down emissions and help care for the planet.

Science Based Targets (SBTs) provide companies with a clearly defined path to reduce emissions in line with the Paris Agreement goal to limit global temperature rises to 1.5 degrees. They show companies how much and how quickly they need to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the worst effects of climate change.

TPE has already taken steps towards addressing climate change and is on track to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent per vehicle kilometre by April 2023.  The company has already cut carbon emissions by 18 per cent since 2019 and its Nova train fleet, which includes bi-mode and electric trains, helps reduce passengers’ CO2 by 77 per cent compared to travelling by car*.

TPE is part of FirstGroup, which has become the first bus and rail operator in the UK to formally commit to setting an ambitious science-based target to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 at the latest.


*Based on TransPennine Express data across all fleet for FY19/20 compared to single occupancy average car data published by the Government Greenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2020