Greening road transport: What is the ‘duplex approach’

The road transport sector is committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. But many types of actions are needed to achieve this. How do we get there, starting today?

Commercial road transport offers a huge range of truck, bus and coach services to meet the diverse needs of people, businesses and communities across multiple geographies and distances. Many solutions are necessary to reduce CO₂ emissions across the sector.

The IRU Green Compact's study on the sector in Europe found that to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, the industry and governments need to deliver on two types of actions at the same time: energy efficiency measures and alternative fuels implementation. This is the "duplex approach".

Looking ahead to 2050 on a cumulative basis, efficiency measures available right now are estimated to account for 51% of CO₂ emission reductions, while alternative fuels will cut CO₂ emissions by 49%. This roadmap allows expensive development and infrastructure investment for electricity and hydrogen to be spread over a longer time.

Efficient measures cover logistics (e.g. retiming, platooning and eco-trucks), vehicles (e.g. tyres, lightweighting and waste heat recovery), and drivers (e.g. eco-driving, driver monitoring and certification schemes).

Over time, efficiency measures will also reduce the volumes of more expensive alternative fuels required for services operated with such vehicles.

The second level of action focuses on building a robust, practical and economic transition to alternative fuels. This means investing now in fossil-free alternative fuels, including electricity, hydrogen and biofuels, as well as the public and private infrastructure, vehicles and operational practices needed to use them.

However, zero- and low-carbon fuel technology options must remain available and economically viable due to the wide range of commercial road transport service types and needs, and the various national and regional energy supply options and restrictions.

Operators need to be able to choose the right technology, including biofuels, biogas and e-fuels as well as electricity and hydrogen, for their services and customers' needs.

In Europe, compared with a heavier focus on electrification or hydrogen, the duplex approach was found to be up to 11% more effective in removing CO₂ emissions, less disruptive to economic growth by allowing more future transport demand to be fulfilled (10% goods, 75% passenger), and cost up to 19% less to governments and business over the long term.

Delivering the many solutions necessary to decarbonise commercial road transport in a pragmatic and cost-effective way - while keeping transport networks moving - requires collaboration from regulators, suppliers and users. IRU's Green Compact lays out the roadmap to do this.

Learn more about the IRU Green Compact'sroadmap for a carbon-neutral road transport industry by 2050.

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