Greater Anglia’s Scope 1 and 2 emissions were reduced by over 67,000 tons between April 2022 and March 2023 according to a report by independent environmental consultancy, WSP.
The saving is the equivalent of the emissions produced by over 130,000 homes’ annual electricity usage and has been achieved thanks to a series of energy and carbon reduction measures.
The train operator has been working to minimize its carbon emissions and become an even more sustainable organization, to achieve Net Zero along with the rest of the rail industry by 2050.
This has seen Greater Anglia introduce new more energy-efficient trains, cut waste, increase recycling and work with partners and communities on projects to improve sustainability and biodiversity at stations.
The company has also worked to install wireless energy management systems at its rail stations to ensure heating and lighting are used efficiently and taken steps to reduce water consumption.
The reduction in emissions is also in part thanks to the continued greening of the National Grid which now uses more renewable sources to generate electricity, and this in turn powers Greater Anglia’s electric trains, depots, and stations.
Greater Anglia’s environment and energy manager, Nir Barak, said, “Research shows that trains are the most environmentally friendly form of transport after cycling and walking, with greenhouse gas emissions per kilometer by rail being far less than cars.
“Our new trains are more efficient and produce less particulate pollution than our old ones which is helping to make rail travel in East Anglia an even more environmentally friendly option,” Barak added.
Greater Anglia’s new trains are designed to be more efficient and are built to higher emissions standards compared to the old ones. Aerodynamic fronts, lighter chassis and brakes which return energy back to the network are some of the features of Greater Anglia’s new trains which are making train travel even more sustainable.
They are also longer with more seats, which means that they can carry more passengers and take even more cars off the road – preventing tons of harmful CO2 emissions from being released into the atmosphere as well as reducing congestion.