Greening us out of gridlock
This report sets out a vision for reinvestment in coaches across England in order to cut private car use while boosting domestic tourism and tackling social isolation.
We are calling for:
300 miles of new bus lanes on England’s strategic roads network
A new network of coach routes to reconnect the north of England
A commitment to making this happen by 2030
Our report argues that investment in coaches is a cheap and rapid way of shifting longer distance journeys from private cars, thereby putting us on track to meet our climate goals while cutting congestion and boosting the economy.
Tailpipe emissions from surface transport now make up 28% of domestic UK emissions, more than any other sector, and have barely changed in the last 30 years. With the UK legally bound to cut emissions by 68% from 1990 levels by 2030 and 78% by 2035, investment is needed in public transport in order to cut the road miles driven in private cars required to meet our near term climate targets.
We know we need to slash car miles to meet our climate goals, and some of the longest journeys up and down our motorways are being taken for holidays and leisure. It’s time to replace those traffic jams with a new fleet of luxury, electric coaches zipping to and from our most beautiful destinations.
Luxury, electric coaches are a perfect decarbonisation option for longer journeys because we can get them rolling really quickly and really cheaply. With a new network of coach routes we can cut carbon while boosting our economy and helping people enjoy the country they live in.