insights What is the route to sustainable transport worldwide?

What role does transport play in climate change?

Young climate change activist Greta Thunberg has become known around the world for her campaign towards a more sustainable future and her abstention from using carbon emission-producing transport. Such is her commitment to generate awareness of the effects of transportation on climate change that she once set sail on a zero-emissions boat from the UK to the US to speak at a UN Climate Action Summit to avoid travelling by plane.

As we know, carbon emissions are the biggest source of climate change and transport does, indeed, contribute greatly to the growing issue. In fact, transport generates almost a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, which is only expected to rise in the coming years as the population grow, contributing further to climate change.

How can we make changes in the transport industry to become more sustainable?

Traditional transport methods which require the use of fossil fuels such as coal and oil which release carbon dioxide when burned have an enormous role to play in climate change. This is because the greenhouse effect has been created by growing levels of carbon dioxide, which gets trapped in the earth’s ozone layer and causes the planet to warm.

The Second UN Global Sustainable Transport Conference, which took place in October 2021, highlighted the opportunities, challenges, and solutions towards achieving sustainable transport worldwide. At the conference, representatives discussed the importance of sustainable transport and ways forward for achieving a transformation. This included using new and emerging technologies, motivating consumers towards adopting more sustainable mobility patterns and strengthening regional and interregional connectivity.

The World Economic Forum suggests that the transportation sector in India, in particular, has a critical role to play in the world’s net-zero future, as it is home to twenty-two of the 30 most populated cities in the world. Electric Vehicles (EVs) are a viable solution to this problem, and they are starting to make groundwork in various countries around the world, which in turn the transport sector will need to deliver.

Working in the transportation sector

The transport sector, like many others, is experiencing a transition to becoming more influenced by digital. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming every aspect of our lives, including resculpting our growing transport network by leveraging technology to help increase safety, reduce congestion, and minimize carbon emissions.

Working in transportation has therefore never been more exciting. With the rise of digital, mobility-as-a-service, and technologies like BIM, the opportunities are endless, and your career will be full of growth, learning, and development.

Drive your career in transport forward at AtkinsRéalis

In 2020, AtkinsRéalis renewed a commitment to making the world more environmentally sustainable for all. We launched ‘Our vision for engineering a sustainable society’, which details our Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) targets, in addition to our Routemap to achieving Net Zero Carbon emissions.

If this is something you’re interested in, we’d like to hear from you. We’re looking for innovative individuals, passionate about sustainability, to join our growing teams. If you’re looking for a new challenge working on major transportation projects, providing solutions to the world’s most complex problems, apply for a transportation job and drive your career in transport forward at AtkinsRéalis .