Abstract
With a total of 3.5 billion tonnes in CO2 emissions in 2017, which represent 9.8 percent of global emissions, the European Union is the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases globally (Ritchie Hanna, et al). Nearly 25 percent of these emissions stem from the transportation sector, which makes it the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions after the energy supply (European Commission). Further, it is the only major sector in which emissions constantly increased from 1990 to 2007 and it is still the only sector where emission levels are still higher than in 1990 (OECD/ITF). Road transportation represents the largest share of emissions in this sector, accounting for over 70 percent of total transport emissions (European Commission). Therefore, complementary to the electrification of road transportation, a transition to rail transportation offers a high potential to accelerate climate change mitigation.
Freight Transportation
We can divide the transportation mode further into freight and passenger transportation. When looking at freight transportation it is possible to observe a drastic shift from rail to road transport in the last 70 years. In the 1950s rail accounted for 60% of freight transportation in Europe (McKinsey). In the 2020 modal split for the EU rail only accounted for 16.8 percent and road for 77.4 percent of inland freight transport. On an intra-EU level, rail and road transportation account for 11.9 percent and 54.7 percent respectively with the rest split between maritime, inland waterways, and air transportation (Eurostat). This split in transportation methods is especially important when greenhouse gas emissions are considered. Rail transportation emits 24 gCO^2 e per tkm compared to 24gCO2 e per tkm for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) which represents the main part of road transportation (European Environment Agency). Therefore, reversing the trend of the last seven decades offers one of the most important measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The Baltic Nations serve as a strong example for the rest of Europe. With a total of 64.7 percent Lithuania has the highest inland freight transportation share of any EU country, including consistently high growth rates over the last decade. Latvia and Estonia follow with ranks of 2 and 3 respectively (Eurostat). Austria was also able to keep rail freight transportation constantly over 30 percent over the last decades, which shows that the goal of the European Union to double the modal share of rail freight transportation by 2030 should be possible (McKinsey).
This shift back from road to rail transport becomes even more important when considering the fact that efficiency for rail freight is much higher than for HGVs. From 2014 to 2018, efficiency for rail freight increased by 11%, while efficiency for HGVs increased only by 3% over the same time frame (European Environment Agency).
Two main challenges arise when striving to increase railroad freight transportation. First, road transportation offers higher flexibility, lower costs, and a better reach than rail freight transport. Secondly, railroad infrastructure was heavily reduced over the last decades. In Germany, for example, private rail siding dropped from 11,500 to 2,300 in the last 25 years, while in France private access points dropped roughly 90% from 1970 (McKinsey). Therefore, the investment in an extensive European railway network to revitalize closed rail access points and increase the reach of rail, while also looking at the economic aspects of rail and road transportation, is of high significance.
The Single European Railway Network
In 1996 the first guidelines for the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) were adopted by the European Union. The TEN-T represents the plan to establish a common network of railway lines, roads, inland waterways, maritime routes, ports, and airports. One of the goals is the creation of a single European railway area. A switch to rail transport, which only accounts for 0.5% of total emissions for the European Union, is the most efficient method of transportation outside of maritime for freight. It would have a strong effect on decarbonization (European Council).
One challenge is the strong fragmentation of the national railway companies in Europe, as well as the technical differences in national railway networks. According to the Heinrich-Boll-Stiftung, the Rail Net Europe which manages the European rail infrastructure consists of 36 members from 25 different companies. The Forum Train Europe consists of 92 railway companies from 31 European countries. This vast fragmentation of parties complicates coordination dramatically. The creation of timetables and the allocation of railway track slots must be coordinated between freight trains and all different types of passenger trains and considering all interest groups involved in the network.
The technical differences between the national railway networks add another layer to the implementation of a Single European Railway Network. These differences can be placed mainly into 2 categories: electrification systems and rail gauges. Approximately 81 percent of frequently used railways in Europe are electrified (Bateman), which implies that trains from different countries often are not compatible. The same applies to rail gauges, as some countries in Europe use different gauge sizes.
The consolidation of railway companies and infrastructure providers could be one way for the European Union to tackle this problem. A consolidated European Railway Network would make it easier to coordinate railway slots, while also providing the strength to harmonize the technical differences of national railway networks over time, and further providing the funding for extensive network expansions.
One example of an effective and extensive railway network is offered by the Gotthard Tunnel in Switzerland which should increase freight volume from Switzerland to Italy by 20 percent according to Weinrich.
Financing and Economic Effects
Even for a consolidated European Railway Network to construct additional railway tracks represents a large investment in infrastructure. According to Trabo, the completion of one kilometre of railway costs between 12 and 45 million euros. To manage these costs and keep rail competitive, large investments and subsidies from the European Union and individual countries are necessary. To finance these expenditures the EU needs an effective carbon pricing model, including an emissions trading scheme, like the one currently employed by the EU, and a carbon taxation system similar to the one in Sweden. This would not only have the effect of offering financing methods for railway expansions but would also lead to more competitive (freight) railway networks, because of price increases for higher polluting transportation modes.
Even though the initial financial costs are high, investing in extensive railroad infrastructure offers many economic benefits, as can be seen in Portugal. According to Pereira and Andraz, investments in the railroad network of Portugal led to strong positive effects. It increased private investment, employment, and output. This effect on output took effect in nearly all regions. Further, the effects of railroad investment on private investment and output are higher than the corresponding effects for road investments. This investment, therefore, despite its high cost, not only offers the possibility for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, but also social improvements.
Recommendations
A Single European Railway Network and the expansion of rail freight transport in combination with other methods, like effective EU carbon pricing and further developments in e-mobility, have the potential to significantly decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
Consequently, harnessing the potential of rail freight transport and a Single European Railway Network is crucial to further accelerate climate change mitigation. Given the urgency of climate change, subsidies and other incentives must be provided to increase the attractiveness of rail transportation for the private sector.
Secondly, an extension of the European Railway Network is required to provide the necessary infrastructure for rising demand and to further increase the appeal of rail for freight passenger transportation. This additionally enables us to better utilize and expand the high-speed train network mentioned by Sato in this policy statement package.
Finally, since the building of railways is expensive, revenues from carbon taxation systems could be used to finance the expansion of a single European railway network.
Works Cited
Bateman, Tom. ‘Faster Trains and Cheaper Tickets under New EU Rail Plans’. Euronews, 15 Dec. 2021, https://www.euronews.com/next/2021/12/15/europe-s-high-speed-rail-network-is-about-to-get-bigger-faster-and-cheaper-under-new-eu-pl.
European Commission. Transport Emissions. https://ec.europa.eu/clima/eu-action/transport-emissions_en. Accessed 18 May 2022.
European Council. Building the Single European Railway Area. https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/single-eu-railway-area/. Accessed 17 May 2022.
European Environment Agency. Rail and Waterborne — Best for Low-Carbon Motorised Transport — European Environment Agency. https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/rail-and-waterborne-transport. Accessed 17 May 2022.
Eurostat. Freight Transport Statistics - Modal Split. https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Freight_transport_statistics_-_modal_split. Accessed 17 May 2022.
McKinsey. European Rail Freight Transformation | McKinsey. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/travel-logistics-and-infrastructure/our-insights/bold-moves-to-boost-european-rail-freight. Accessed 17 May 2022.
OECD/ITF. “Carbon Valuation for Transport Policy”. Paris, 2015
Pereira M. Alfredo, and Jorge M. Andraz. ‘ON THE ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF INVESTMENT IN RAILROAD INFRASTRUCTURES IN PORTUGAL’. Journal of Economic Development, vol. 37, no. 2, June 2012, pp. 79–107
Phillip Cerny. “Rail: The Challenges of a Single European Railway Area”. Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, https://eu.boell.org/en/rail-the-challenges-of-a-single-european-railway-area. Accessed 17 May 2022.
Ritchie, Hannah, et al. “CO₂ and Greenhouse Gas Emissions”. Our World in Data, May 2020. ourworldindata.org, https://ourworldindata.org/co2-emissions. Accessed 17 May 2022
Trabo, Inara, et al. Cost Benchmarking of Railway Projects in Europe – Can It Help to Reduce Costs? p. 21.
Weinrich, Regina. ‘Gotthard-Basistunnel: Schneller nach Italien’. Eurotransport, 5 Nov. 2015, https://www.eurotransport.de/artikel/gotthard-basistunnel-schneller-nach-italien-6784334.html. Accessed 17 May 2022.
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