Mobility is an important requirement for our economy and a basic human need. However, traffic creates many problems that harm people and the environment. In addition to CO₂ emissions and other climate-damaging greenhouse gases, traffic-related air pollutants such as particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) are a major health hazard. A comprehensive concept for sustainable mobility emphasises traffic avoidance and the shift of traffic to more environmentally friendly modes of transport. It includes the technical optimisation of drive systems and a switch to sustainable alternative fuels. An important pillar of sustainable mobility is eco-mobility with buses and trains as well as bicycle and pedestrian traffic.
The German Environment Agency (UBA) is campaigning for rail freight noise reduction. Solutions include cladding train wheels and brakes to reduce noise directly at the source. Financial reward for quiet trains must be increased, for example with lower track access charges.
Diesel passenger cars exceed European limits for nitrogen dioxide (NOx) on roads at higher levels than previously thought. In 2016 emissions were assumed to be 575 mg NOx/km, but the diesel-fuelled passenger car fleet in Germany actually had average emissions of 767 mg NOx/km. These findings are based on new calculations done on behalf of the German Environment Agency (UBA).
Air pollution, noise, traffic jams, too few green spaces – these are the problems that plague many people living in cities. In a new publication UBA paints a picture of how the future-fit city might look.
Complaints about low-frequency noise – the so-called humming phenomenon – have risen sharply in recent years. A new guide by UBA provides advice on the ideal installation of heat pumps and the like.
The goals of the Climate Action Plan can only be achieved through an energy transformation in the transport sector. Electromobility is the most economical of all greenhouse gas-neutral solutions.
Krautzberger: Move more goods to the rail, substitute fossil fuels.
A new OECD report discusses examples from countries like Germany, Japan and New Zealand of how transport policy can be better adapted to climate change. The report also examines the major challenges in assessing the economic damage caused by greenhouse gases.
A distance-based toll makes it possible to set differentiated charges for infrastructure and other costs incurred by society as a result of road traffic. Frequent drivers pay more than occasional drivers, resulting in positive ecological and traffic steering effects. The time-based vignette is not a meaningful solution, since it amounts to a flat rate charge for frequent road users.
Whether it is car sharing or shared housing – lending, exchange or shared usage is in fashion.
Pedelecs are all the rage. There are now 1.6 million e-bikes on Germany's roads. A new background paper by UBA discusses the environmental impact of pedelecs. This knowledge is now available to an international audience in an English language translation of the paper.
This is the conclusion of the European Environment Agency in its annual report on the pressures of the transport sector on the environment.
Urban transport in the EU is undergoing a change. This is the outcome of the latest Transport and Environmental Reporting Mechanism (TERM) Report by the European Environment Agency (EEA).
