Four Government Agencies Release The U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization
Image: Kyra, Adobe Stock
On January 10, 2023 the leaders of the departments of Energy, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and the Environmental Protection Agency released the The U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization, an interagency framework of strategies and actions to remove all emissions from the transportation sector by 2050. The Blueprint offers a plan to address the climate crisis and meet President Biden’s goal of 100 percent clean electrical grid by 2035 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
According to the report, the transportation sector is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, responsible for one-third of all emissions.
Image source: The U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization
“Transportation policy is inseparable from housing and energy policy, and transportation accounts for a major share of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, so we must work together in an integrated way to confront the climate crisis,” said Pete Buttigieg Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation of the Blueprint. “Every decision about transportation is also an opportunity to build a cleaner, healthier, more prosperous future. When our air is cleaner; when more people can get good-paying jobs; when everyone stays connected to the resources they need and the people they love, we are all better off.”
The decarbonization blueprint prioritizes action in three categories:
Increase convenience by supporting community design and land-use planning at the local and regional levels that ensure that job centers, shopping, schools, entertainment, and essential services are strategically located near where people live to reduce commute burdens, improve walkability and bikeability, and improve quality of life.
Improve efficiency by expanding affordable, accessible, efficient, and reliable options like public transportation and rail, and improving the efficiency of all vehicles.
Transition to clean options by deploying zero emission vehicles and fuels for cars, commercial trucks, transit, boats, airplanes, and more.
Image source: The U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization Fact Sheet
A few of the plans laid out to achieve in the near-term (pre-2030) include:
Increase Convenience
Partner with local communities to develop and demonstrate effective, equitable, and scalable local or regional land-use and planning solutions to increase convenience and reduce emissions by making it possible for people to take fewer or shorter trips.
Support land-use, street design, and development policies that make walking and biking easier, safer and more convenient.
Improve Efficiency
Invest in rail, public transportation, and active transportation infrastructure to provide the option to use more affordable and energy-efficient forms of transportation.
Invest in research and innovation to further develop and demonstrate clean technologies (e.g., achieve battery, hydrogen electrolysis, and sustainable fuel cost targets) and enable seamless integration with energy systems.
Transition to Clean Options
Set clear, ambitious but achievable targets across all travel modes (e.g., sales shares of zero-emission vehicles, volumes of sustainable fuels, emissions reduction targets).
Invest in research and innovation to further develop and demonstrate clean technologies (e.g., achieve battery, hydrogen electrolysis, and sustainable fuel cost targets) and enable seamless integration with energy systems.
The report also lays out longer term goals that will help them achieve 100 percent clean electrical grid by 2035 and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and acknowledges the need to funnel attention to underserved communities.
In its conclusion, the report calls for “unprecedented coordination among every level of government, private industry, community based organizations, stakeholder groups, and all Americans,” for the Blueprint to succeed.
