Carbon cutting commitment celebrated

Rochdale Interchange screw-driven turbine

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Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has been recognised nationally for its commitment to saving energy and cutting carbon emissions.

The Ticket 2 Kyoto (T2K) scheme, an international four-year project involving TfGM aiming to reduce carbon emissions from public transport, has been shortlisted in the environment category of the 2015 Local Government Chronicle awards.

Held on 11 March at Grosvenor House, London, the awards aim to recognise outstanding achievement and innovation in local government service delivery. This year’s event has generated 663 entries from a record 222 organisations.

TfGM has been involved in the T2K project since it began in 2011, along with transport operators from Germany (Mobiel), France (RATP), Holland (RET) and Belgium (STIB).

Since 2011, TfGM has achieved a number of significant environmental successes, reducing carbon emissions by 19% and becoming the first UK transport authority to commit to becoming zero carbon by 2033.

In September 2012, a wind turbine providing power at Bolton’s popular Horwich Parkway railway station was switched on, generating up to 27,000kWh of electricity every year – around half of the electricity needed to power the station.

Rochdale interchange, opened in November 2013, was the first transport hub in Europe to be powered by hydroelectricity with water from the River Roch turning a screw-driven turbine to generate up to 86,000kWh per annum of electricity every year – reducing the carbon footprint by over a quarter.

TfGM has also replaced all 2,200 traffic signal heads in Greater Manchester with LEDs, making energy savings of around 42%.

In addition, TfGM launched an electric vehicle charging point network and pay as you go programme in 2013, with charge points installed at key locations across all ten districts.

Transport for Greater Manchester Committee Chair, Councillor Andrew Fender, said: “Our involvement in Ticket 2 Kyoto has seen us invest in some really innovative green projects over the last few years and it’s great that they have been recognised as some of the best of their kind in the country.

“Traffic counts for a third of carbon emissions in Greater Manchester, and our ambitious carbon savings target aim to tackle that problem.

“But it’s not just about what organisations can do. We all share a responsibility to reduce our carbon footprint by minimising the production of greenhouse gases like CO2 and that’s why we’re encouraging people to walk and cycle more, as well as using public transport where possible.”