Morgan, M. orcid.org/0000-0002-9488-9183, Wadud, Z. orcid.org/0000-0003-2692-8299 and Cairns, S. (2025) Can rail reduce British aviation emissions? Transportation Research Part D Transport and Environment, 138. 104513. ISSN 1361-9209
Abstract
We analyse UK airport origin–destination data from 1990 to 2021 to understand the extent to which a modal shift to rail may reduce aviation emissions. We find that 41 % of UK aviation passengers travel on routes that can be done by rail in less than 24 h. However, these passengers account for only 14 % of UK aviation emissions because long-haul flights contribute the majority of emissions. Some popular destinations (e.g. Spanish Islands) are inaccessible by rail and may be suitable for destination switching. We also find rapid growth in flights to international hub airports used for connecting journeys. This has implications for carbon accounting, suggesting that a significant and growing proportion of UK residents’ aviation emissions are being excluded from national accounts. Finally, the paper recommends some interventions that might encourage a modal shift to rail.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 The Authors. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | Aviation; Emissions; High-speed rail; UK; Origin-destination |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > Institute for Transport Studies (Leeds) > ITS: Sustainable Transport Policy (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Chemical & Process Engineering (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 12 Dec 2024 13:45 |
Last Modified: | 12 Dec 2024 13:45 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.trd.2024.104513 |
Related URLs: | |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:220731 |
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