Unlock capacity for rail freight to meet net zero emissions, says Logistics UK

Wednesday 28 April 2021

In response to the publication today (28 April 2021) of the Rail Delivery Group’s Value of Rail Freight report, Zoe McLernon, Policy Manager of Multi Modal at Logistics UK comments:

“Logistics UK is urging the government to unlock capacity for rail freight services to help meet the target of a net zero emission economy by 2050. Currently taking seven million lorries off the roads each year, rail freight can play a vital role in achieving the UK’s decarbonisation targets, but capacity for freight services is severely constrained. Logistics UK is urging the government to heed the report findings – which revealed that freight services on some underutilised off-peak passenger routes deliver greater economic value than passenger use – and allow freight operators access to these lines. Logistics UK is also urging the government to commit to electrifying the UK’s railways, with today’s report showing that on delivery of a decarbonisation strategy and the potential growth in domestic movements, the environmental benefits of rail use over road could increase by six to ten-fold.”

Logistics UK is one of the UK’s leading business groups, representing logistics businesses which are vital to keeping the UK trading, and more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and moving of goods. With COVID-19, Brexit, new technology and other disruptive forces driving change in the way goods move across borders and through the supply chain, logistics has never been more important to UK plc. Logistics UK supports, shapes and stands up for safe and efficient logistics, and is the only business group which represents the whole industry, with members from the road, rail, sea and air industries, as well as the buyers of freight services such as retailers and manufacturers whose businesses depend on the efficient movement of goods.