Drive Supported by 2.49
Million Euros German
Funding & UNEP Technical Assistance
New Delhi, 12 November
2010 - India has embarked on a new pathway
towards developing a low-carbon transport
system, days before the convening of the
UN climate change convention in Cancun.
Launched in New Delhi,
Thursday, a new 2.49 million Euros three-year
project - funded by the German International
Climate Initiative and supported by the
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- will support the Indian Government's efforts
to align transport growth with the country's
climate change agenda and national development
plan.
Boasting the world's
second largest population, India's per capita
emissions remain below the world average.
But population growth in the last two decades
has been coupled with a rapid increase of
private vehicles and a switch from rail
to road transport across the freight and
passenger sectors.
According to a 2007
estimate, India's transport sector is responsible
for 12.9% of the country's greenhouse gas
emissions - impacting air quality, public
health, road safety and sustainable urban
development.
India's National Action
Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) recognizes
the need to lower GHG emissions from transport
through the adoption of an integrated sustainability
approach that encourages the move towards
enhanced energy efficiency in transport,
higher penetration of biofuels, sustainable
urban planning, improved public awareness
and participation and the promotion of public
transport services.
Endorsed by the Ministry
of Environment and Forests, the project
comprises two key interventions: the development
of a national action plan for low-carbon
transport and the design of low-carbon mobility
plans for 4 major cities across India. The
cities component will be carried out in
close coordination with the Ministry of
Urban Development.
Key local partners include
the Indian Institute of Management, the
Centre of Environmental Planning and Technology
University in Ahmedabad, and the Indian
Institute of Technology in Delhi.
The German International
Climate Initiative - the main funder of
the project - aims to support partner countries
worldwide in establishing climate-friendly
economic structures that reduce greenhouse
gas emissions where possible. This support
covers areas such as increasing energy efficiency,
expanding renewable energies, capacity building
and policy advice in the partner country.
"Transport is one
of the most challenging topics due to its
continuing growth", said Germany's
Environment Minister, Dr. Norbert Roettgen.
"Without effective
measures and programmes, successes in reducing
emissions in other sectors could be offset
by increased emissions from transport. We
need both a clear reduction of transport
emissions in the industrialized world but
also a slow-down of current emission trends
in the developing world. The German Federal
Environment Ministry supports this project
as an ambitious and comprehensive trend-setting
example aiming for climate friendly and
sustainable mobility in India."
The outcomes of the
national low-carbon transport action plan
will include the development of Sustainability
Indicators; an assessment of transport sector
emissions and projections of future emissions
till 2050; policy recommendations and a
road map for the development of a sustainable
transport system, including the identification
of technology and financial needs and international
cooperation options.
The cities component
of the project will produce a methodology
for developing low-carbon mobility plans
at the city level and will identify appropriate
infrastructure and technology options for
emissions reduction and climate change adaptation
measures as part of these plans.
The project will also
create an online network for information
sharing and coordination to facilitate better
cooperation among stakeholders and to encourage
public engagement.
It is hoped that the
newly-launched low carbon transport project
will create a model transport pathway for
India that can serve as an inspiration to
other developing countries.
