IPPR Fair Transition Unit warns of significant NetZero Transport challenges
A new Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) report on the future of transport warns that there is considerable uncertainty over the future of the sector and its path to NetZero which is being exacerbated by incoherent government policy.
The think tank’s newly established Fair Transition Unit argues in its first report that this uncertainty could be better managed with more proactive government policy and investment that seeks to shape public demand and put us firmly on course to net zero.
The researchers warn that without this guiding strategy, the UK risks further embedding the injustices of our current transport system – such as higher levels of air pollution and traffic accidents for people living in poorer neighbourhoods – and leaving policymakers in a position where they are constantly forced to react to changing demand, technology, and events.
The Department of Transport has described their approach as “not about stopping people doing things: it’s about doing the same things differently”. But the IPPR report warns that this approach, that would primarily see people swapping fossil fuel emitting vehicles for electric ones, will disproportionately benefit the wealthiest in society and fail to provide the social, health, and wellbeing benefits of alternative paths.
IPPR argues that rather than replicating our current system, policymakers should instead use the transition to imagine and embed a new more equitable vision for the future of transport. To achieve this, the report calls on the government to establish a national strategy that provides direction, coordination, investment and coherent communication to shape public behaviour, transport demand, the application of new technology and sector activity.
IPPR proposes the following principles for a more desirable future of transport that will maximise the benefits and fairness of the transition:
- Active travel, such as cycling and walking, and public transport should be placed at the heart of the transport system. There must also be better planning, more local amenities, jobs, and enhanced digital infrastructure to reduce the need for regular long-distance travel.
- Road use by personal vehicles should be lower. Electric vehicles should be available to those who need them, but increasingly accessed through shared mobility schemes, and alternatives should be available to reduce the need to drive.
- Streets should be safer and greener. The resulting reduction in personal car ownership should enable the reallocation of street space for cycling, walking, and nature.
IPPR argues that such an approach would ensure the benefits of the transport transition are fairly shared, as well as reducing road accidents and improving public health by reducing air pollution and increasing physical activity. As IPPR has long argued, increasing fairness is vital for building and sustaining support in the transition to net zero.
This report is the first by IPPR’s new Fair Transition Unit (FTU). The unit is a new initiative to carry forward the work of IPPR’s cross-party Environmental Justice Commission, which published its final report last year. The FTU’s mission is “to accelerate progress in reducing emissions and restoring nature and secure a fairer, more just and thriving society”.
In 2022 and beyond, the Fair Transition Unit will present analysis and policy proposals which show how action on climate and nature can bring down the cost of living, tackle inflation, and improve health and wellbeing.
Becca Massey-Chase, IPPR Principal Research Fellow, said:
“Right now, we risk sleep walking towards a future where the inequalities in our transport system are entrenched rather than tackled. Policymakers should seize the opportunity of the transition to net zero to improve people’s lives by enabling a wider shift from cars to walking, cycling and public transport.”
Luke Murphy, Head of the IPPR Fair Transition Unit, said:
“The transition to a zero-carbon economy can also reduce inequalities, level up across the UK and improve wellbeing. But it’s not going to happen by accident, it needs to be designed that way.
“Decarbonisation of transport shows that for policymakers, it’s all too easy to drift towards the safe space of seeing travel behaviour and the transition as a force outside our control.”
“We must move beyond just predicting and towards shaping demand. Good policy, shaped by public engagement, can ensure a fair transition for transport that doesn’t just cut emissions, but also boosts health, wellbeing, and nature.”