Understanding CO2 Emissions and the Path to Carbon Neutrality in UK Freight

Date icon 30/10/2024 Read time icon 8 minutes read

Northgate Vehicle Hire has analysed government data to uncover key insights on CO₂ emissions across the UK from light and heavy goods vehicles (LGV and HGV). With the transport sector undergoing a green revolution, it’s crucial to understand how local areas are performing in the race to net zero emissions.

Our analysis highlights regional disparities in CO₂ emissions and outlines the number of electric vans (EVs) required for each area to achieve carbon neutrality in freight transport.

Key Findings

Based on our research, we found significant regional differences in CO₂ emissions from light goods vehicles (LGVs) and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs). For instance, South East England emitted approximately 6.7 billion tons of CO₂, while all of Wales produced just 2.15 billion tons in comparison.

Using the CO₂ emissions data for each area, we calculated the number of electric vans needed for each region and city to achieve CO₂ neutrality for LGV and HGV freight.

Wales

In 2022, freight transport in Wales, primarily through Light Goods Vehicles (LGVs) and Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs), generated approximately 2.15 billion tons of CO₂ emissions. To offset these emissions, Wales would need around 144 electric vans in operation.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Cardiff	13.1
Newport	11.3
Swansea	7.2

Scotland

In 2022, LGVs and HGVs in Scotland emitted around 4.2 billion tons of CO₂. To reach carbon neutrality, Scotland would need approximately 282 electric vans in operation.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Aberdeen	6.8
Dumfries and Galloway	23.2
Glasgow	19.2
South Lanarkshire	24.4
Stirling	7.1

North East England

In 2022, LGVs and HGVs in North East England produced around 1.4 billion tons of CO₂. Achieving carbon neutrality in the region would require deploying approximately 93 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
County Durham	23.6
Northumberland	16.2
Stockton-On-Tees	7.0

North West England

Freight transport from LGVs and HGVs in North West England generated about 4.8 billion tons of CO₂ emissions in 2022. Offsetting this amount would require the region to deploy roughly 320 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Bolton	10.3
Cheshire East	33.4
Cheshire West and Chester	23.2
Knowsley	8.3
Rochdale	12.4
Stockport	7.9

Yorkshire and the Humber

In 2022, freight activities from LGVs and HGVs in Yorkshire and the Humber produced approximately 4.3 billion tons of CO₂. Offsetting these emissions would necessitate the deployment of about 289 electric vans across the region.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Leeds	40.7
Doncaster	28.5
Sheffield	13.1

East Midlands

Freight transport in the East Midlands produced an estimated 4.5 billion tons of CO₂ in 2022 from LGVs and HGVs. Offsetting this level of emissions would require around 300 electric vans in the region.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Derby	6.9
Leicester	6.1
West Northamptonshire	46.5
North Northamptonshire	23.6

West Midlands

In 2022, freight transport in the West Midlands generated roughly 4.7 billion tons of CO₂ from LGVs and HGVs. To neutralise these emissions, the region would need approximately 316 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Birmingham	25.5
Cannock Chase	2.7
Coventry	8.3
Stoke-on-Trent	7.2
North Warwickshire	21.6

East of England

Freight activities from LGVs and HGVs in the East of England resulted in approximately 5.5 billion tons of CO₂ emissions in 2022. Offsetting this would require around 365 electric vans in the region.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Huntingdonshire	26.6
Central Bedfordshire	24.2

Inner London

In 2022, freight transport in Inner London produced about 660 million tons of CO₂ from LGVs and HGVs. To counterbalance these emissions, the area would need approximately 44 electric vans in operation.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Tower Hamlets	5.0
Newham	4.5

Outer London

Freight transport in Outer London generated approximately 1.6 billion tons of CO₂ in 2022 from LGVs and HGVs. To balance out these emissions, the area would need to deploy roughly 106 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Barking and Dagenham	3.8
Croydon	5.3
Havering	13.2
Enfield	12.6

South East England

In 2022, freight activities in South East England resulted in approximately 6.7 billion tons of CO₂ emissions from LGVs and HGVs. To mitigate these emissions, the region would need to utilise around 444 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Basildon	5.9
Buckinghamshire	34.2
Crawley	3.7
Dartford	12.3
Milton Keynes	14.8
Norwich	1.7
Portsmouth	5.4
Reading	2.3
Slough	4.0
South Gloucestershire	26.0
Southampton	4.0
West Berkshire	19.6

South West England

In 2022, freight transport in South West England emitted approximately 4.1 billion tons of CO₂ from LGVs and HGVs. To reduce this impact, the region would need to implement around 275 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Bristol	10.3
Exeter	2.2
Luton	4.0
Plymouth	5.7
Wiltshire	30.6

Northern Ireland

In 2022, Light Goods Vehicles and Heavy Goods Vehicles in Northern Ireland generated approximately 990 million tons of CO₂. To lessen this impact, the region would require around 66 electric vans.

Local Area in the UK	Number of EV vans required to be CO₂ neutral
Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon	9.6
Newry, Mourne and Down	8.3

The Road Ahead for the UK

As the UK government pushes for a zero-emissions future, adopting electric vans and trucks is a critical step. By understanding regional differences in emissions and the specific needs of each area, local authorities and businesses can better plan for the transition to a green, sustainable freight transport system.

Northgate Vehicle Hire is committed to supporting the journey toward carbon neutrality by providing flexible, cost-effective EV van hire solutions tailored to your business needs.

For more details on how Northgate can help your business reduce its environmental impact, take a look at our guide on how you can transition your fleet to EVs.

Methodology

This analysis is based on data from various official UK government sources, with a focus on CO₂ emissions in the freight transport sector for light goods vehicles (LGVs) and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs). Key metrics include:

Thousand Tonnes of Oil Equivalent (ktoe): Energy consumption from LGV and HGV freight transport in different regions of the UK, converted to kilowatt-hours (kWh). We used data from this source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-road-transport-energy-consumption-at-regional-and-local-authority-level-2005-to-2022 and converted the data to KwH using this converter: https://www.unitjuggler.com/convert-energy-from-ktoe-to-kWh.html.
CO₂ Emissions (Metric Tons): Calculated based on energy consumption in each region. The data includes both LGV and HGV emissions for 2022. Source used to convert KwH to CO₂: https://ctprodstorageaccountp.blob.core.windows.net/prod-drupal-files/documents/resource/public/Conversion_factor_introductory_guide.pdf
EV Vans Required: To estimate the number of electric vans needed to offset CO₂ emissions, we calculated the CO₂ output from freight transport and used the average CO₂ savings from switching to electric vans based on this source: https://www.webfleet.com/en_gb/webfleet/blog/electrifying-data-cutting-carbon-with-evs/

The analysis considers regional variations and uses government benchmarks to estimate the impact of electrifying freight transport. This approach allows us to provide actionable insights for businesses and local authorities seeking to reduce their carbon footprint through EV adoption.