UAE Designing Blueprint For An Climate Forward Transportation System

Transportation of goods and services accounts for 25% of total GHG emissions. That's a massive share of the climate change problem, and one that affects all of us. It does mean that it is something that can be worked on, with the potential for positive change. As the world looks to move away from the status quo, it also means that there's a huge opportunity for new modes of transport and new ways of organising ourselves socially. Sustainable transportation is transportation that is more energy efficient and based on renewable energy. There are some very compelling reasons to move away from conventional, fossil fuel-based transport systems.

The World Health Organization attributes 7 million deaths per year to pollution caused by private and commercial vehicles. A Harvard University study along the same lines asserts that 8 million people died in 2018 from fossil fuel pollution, significantly more than previous research suggested—meaning that air pollution from burning fossil fuels like coal and diesel was responsible for about 1 in 5 deaths worldwide. This enormous figure emphasises how real the effects of pollution are and how important it is to do something about it. Improving transportation also helps fight climate change, improves air quality and, by extension, public health, and makes it easier for people to move around socially and economically.

What are the fundamentals of a sustainable transport system? Conventionally, the transport pyramid has private cars as the primary mode, public transport as the second, and pedestrians and cyclists as the third, and this is the current hierarchy we see in the UAE. A sustainable version would be turned upside down, de-emphasizing privately owned cars and expanding public transport, along with electric and hybrid-powered cars and trucks, vehicle sharing programs, and micro mobility solutions like bicycles and scooters. A great example of this would be Expo 2020. If you visited the site, you will remember that pedestrians were at the top of the tree, shared scooters and bikes were also an option for getting around, and most people arrived at Expo. The car was the least useful way of getting to the site.

Sustainable transportation has five key elements: public transportation, electrification, shared mobility, soft modes of transport, and innovative new communities. All of these need to be supported by: infrastructure development like metro systems and cycle lanes; technology like solar charging options; government policies that support the shift to a new way of moving; and investment to pay for all these. Electrification is perhaps the best-known aspect of new modes of transport, with Tesla being the flagship. The benefits are numerous; there are no direct emissions from these vehicles, and if they are charged from renewables, then there are no emissions at all. Electric vehicles are also able to go where conventionally powered cars and buses can't because of the absence of noise and other emissions. Shared mobility and public transport like ride shares, metro buses, etc. The more extensive, comfortable, and reliable public transport options like the metro or bus there are, the more people will decide that car ownership is unnecessary. Socially, it means greater equity. Soft forms of transport are bike shares, scooters, and, of course, walking. They are key to solving the first- or last-mile problem. New, sustainably designed communities will be denser, with better public transport and soft transport connections. Such a comprehensive framework has two main effects. It can ensure that people and goods move around in a self-sustaining, intelligent, and carbon-neutral way.

So, how is sustainable transportation faring in the UAE? Overall, it is improving with several flagship projects like Dubai Metro, Etihad Rail, and the rapid growth of Careem and Uber over the past few years. There are still many hurdles to overcome. The UAE and the wider Gulf are not ideal places to encourage people to take the bus or walk. The harsh desert climate tends to have pleasant, warm winters and incredibly hot, humid summers. The cities were designed for cars and tend to be quite spread out and not pedestrian-friendly. Culturally, the car is king here with its guarantee of privacy and comfort. Moving toward a more sustainable way of getting around faces some challenges.

The Dubai Metro opened in 2009 and since then has reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 2.6 million metric tonnes, with the cumulative financial benefits amounting to Dh115 billion, according to its chairman. It has transformed the city's public transportation system. The metro also connects to a network of trams, buses, and water taxis, as well as other soft transport options, which means that many commuters can get around the city without a car, as they would in London, Vienna, or Hong Kong. The metro itself is a fantastic addition to the city, which raises the quality of life rating for residents and visitors alike and helps it compete with more established international cities.

Staying with rail, the Etihad Rail project can be seen as another significant step forward in building a sustainable transport network in the UAE. The railway will redefine logistics and transport in the region through a modern, sustainable network that will connect the seven emirates of the UAE to neighbouring GCC countries. Both freight and passengers will be transported eventually. The number of passengers is projected to reach more than 36.5 million passengers annually across the country by 2030. Passengers will be able to commute between Abu Dhabi and Dubai in only 50 minutes, between Abu Dhabi and Fujairah in only 100 minutes, between Dubai and Fujairah in only 50 minutes, and between Abu Dhabi and Al Ruwais in only 70 minutes. All these journeys will be powered by electricity as opposed to gasoline, resulting in the avoidance of millions of car trips.

Air travel is an essential part of life for many of us here in the UAE, whether for business or travelling home to see family. It's more of a necessity than a luxury, so any efforts to make air travel less polluting should be very welcome. It's very difficult to reduce the direct impact of air travel because the key activity of flying is burning jet fuel. Etihad Airlines in Abu Dhabi is partnering with Boeing on a sustainable aviation fuel project. They also offer their passengers the chance to offset their individual carbon emissions through donations to forestry and clean energy projects. While Emirates doesn't have an offset option, they have invested heavily in solar power options for their ground operations and are monitoring SAF developments.

Aviation is the hardest sector to abate, as the core business involves burning massive amounts of jet fuel.

What can we do as individuals to make sustainable choices when it comes to moving around?

There is a mixture of big decisions and small choices that we can all make. Walking when you can is the easiest and most sustainable way you can get around. If feasible, using a bike scooter for slightly longer journeys also means emission-free travel. And if it's possible, choosing to use the metro or bus instead of your car saves on GHGs and means you don't need to find a parking space. As mentioned earlier, choosing to offset your air travel using an app like Carbonclick is also an option for those that want to actively offset their CO2 emissions. Etihad Airlines offers this option to customers flying out of Abu Dhabi, and people may choose to offset other types of travel like car journeys in the future.

In terms of large personal decisions, going electric with your next vehicle purchase would be a significant step.Tesla has made significant inroads as the class leader in EVs in the UAE market. However, even the Toyota Corolla, a staple of UAE roads, is available in an electric version. With the current high fuel prices, the daily savings on fuel are significant enough to make going electric more attractive than ever. And while not all of us can afford a new Tesla, a quick look on Dubizzle shows EV options starting around 80,000 AE. At the larger end of the spectrum, choosing to move to a denser, more sustainably designed community also means you will be able to travel more comfortably. The sustainable city communities in Dubai, and latterly in Sharjah, and the UAE's original sustainable city, Masdar, are dense, walkable, and encourage pedestrians. In this, they echo the oldest parts of Dubai by the Creek, where roads are narrow and people live in close proximity to each other.

While the UAE is often painted as one of the more environmentally unsustainable countries in the world, it's great to report that all these options are available here. Sustainable communities are springing up, and public transport is expanding and becoming more comfortable and convenient. Softer modes of transportation, such as bike sharing and lift sharing schemes, are now available. While there are definitely factors that make it challenging, the direction of travel for sustainable transport is definitely positive.