Takes climate action
This second Spotlight session focused on the NTS priority Takes Climate Action. The aims of this Spotlight were to identify and understand:
- Reactions, including scepticism and support, for Takes Climate Action and sub-themes.
- Views on behavioural change towards the target to reduce car kilometres by 20% by 2030.
- The importance participants placed on four potential ways to reduce car kilometres and the likelihood they will make changes in their behaviour.
- Their ideas for delivery - including unintended consequences of Delivery Areas.
- The importance they place on Delivery Areas.
Will Help Deliver our Net-Zero Target
NTS explains this outcome as:
Will help deliver our net-zero target: the Climate Change Act passed by the Scottish Parliament includes an increased ambition to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 75% of 1990 levels by 2030, 90% by 2040 (i.e. the period covered by this Strategy) and net-zero emissions by 2045. Transport is currently the largest contributor to Scottish emissions and this will be tackled through a range of actions including an ambition to phase out the need for new petrol and diesel cars and vans by 2032, changing people’s travel behaviour and managing demand.”
| Topic | Materials utilised |
|---|---|
| Overall sub-theme | Elizabeth Wathuti at #COP26: "Please open your hearts" - YouTube - UN Climate Change Conference 2021 Kenya. Climate justice - Researcher and Activist Fraser Stuart, speaking in George Square on 5 Nov Radio Clyde News on Twitter Expect more extreme weather, warn UK climate scientists - YouTube Al Jazeera news, July 2021- featuring Met Office, National Oceanography Centre |
| Ways to reduce car use | Slides Discussion Guide Survey |
The participants had an initial discussion to understand their reactions to the slides and the videos (see Table 6). This highlighted their wider views about the environment and taking climate action.
Several participants mentioned they did not respond to the second video as it politicised the issue.
Listening to the Kenyan lady [first video] was most moving and made me think most about what we can do. More so than an intellectual video or a political video.”
The discussion focused on levels of responsibility and where action should lie:
We are trying all the little things, but clearly not enough when you see the state of the world. I get the feeling that people at the top are trying to shift the blame onto ordinary people.”
We can probably do more than I had thought before this session to make a change…Big businesses are the ones that need to make the change, pressured by ourselves and by governments.”
One participant shared their opinion that wider government policy, UK and Scottish, can counteract their pro-environmental messages. For example, policies around energy and the environmental costs of large infrastructure projects.
Another participant felt hopeful that changes to behaviour by the general population would make the difference. However, other participants were more sceptical:
Maybe cars and lorries, but I don’t feel we can do much to reduce shipping, feels beyond our control.”
We can be quite selfish when considering what we want to give up.”
Mobility of people internationally was raised as something for Scotland to prepare for.
We are going to have climate refugees coming in, and we need to do our bit.”
Discussion focused upon behaviours that would need to change and ways to change these.
Participants raised the enormity of the challenge of meeting net-zero targets. Barriers included:
- Habitual behaviour of car use, established for past 100 years.
- People saying or intending to change their behaviour, but won’t all do this in reality.
- Rural areas don’t always have public transport availability or reliability.
- People may change from dependency on a car to travel, but will revert back if too difficult, time consuming or costly.
These quotes illustrate the points above:
I am a handyman and a cyclist. Even though I take my equipment around with me to different houses, I’ve always refused to have a car or a van… Areas of Glasgow I cycle to for work there’s not pavements and there’s these houses with driveways with three, four cars in them. It’s still a status thing…Maybe we need to tax people on the number of cars in their households.”
Giving lip service do something, doesn’t mean that you will action it”
It’s okay to say you agree but it’s much harder to say how you are going to do it; it’s harder to do practically”
On a Sunday, if it turns up, it’s every two hours for our local service. So you try using it, and it’s not a good experience, it puts you off.”
They’ve cut down the frequency of services during the pandemic. It leads to more time waiting around and it might not tie to your work patterns. My son used to get the bus to and from work, but will have to use the car until the services pick up again.”
We now know that it’s doable during the pandemic that people in office jobs can work from home and no need to travel.”
I’m fortunate that where I live we are well served. Within walking distance, I have supermarkets. I don’t have a car, I do a lot of walking. But that’s easy for me to do. But when I listen to some of the other guys they are far out, and they can’t even get deliveries maybe to their part of Scotland. So it’s easy for me, but not everyone.”
Suggestions included:
- Improving public transport: reliability, safety, frequency and routes.
- Incentives for environmentally friendly transport provision by businesses and social enterprises running services in rural Scotland.
- Stipulations for companies with public sector contracts e.g. delivering goods to use electric vehicles.
- Increased provision for Park and Ride in Rural areas to encourage very short journeys from remote areas to then reach public transport provision.
- Banning certain types of vehicles at certain times or on certain days of the week
- Incentives necessary for such ambitious targets to be achieved, people will need to see a direct benefit to their purse to change their behaviour.
- Educating young people on ways to get around to counter against a perceived culture that they will pass their tests and all get cars.
- Supporting people who must change their behaviour, e.g. an accident or illness means they can no longer drive.
- Present the targets so they seem more achievable e.g. per month, per day, per person in Scotland. This should stop them feeling too abstract and open to interpretation.
- Need practical examples of changing transport mode in local areas: rather than only blanket, nation-wide messaging.
Across participants, the onus was put on members of the public to try out more environmentally friendly ways to travel. Participants shared ways they had reduced their travel, prompted by the pandemic, but relevant for reducing climate impacts:
We have been trying to replicate some of the experience we would otherwise have abroad as part of our life here…So we spend evenings at our allotment sitting in the sun, chatting with people and playing cards. Just trying to re-create a holiday experience, but without travel and a lot less cost.”
When you have family elsewhere you need to travel. Getting from Dunoon to Northumberland is a bit of a journey. But sometimes we do get the train and meet in Carlisle as a halfway point. Means we don’t need a car and it’s a shorter journey for us both.”
The power of the public sector to influence business behaviour was emphasised. Suggestions included stipulations in public contracts and incentives to fill public transport provision gaps. Business behaviour, especially among big businesses, was raised as being important in meeting the targets.
Following introduction slides from Transport Scotland, there were lively, facilitated group discussions on reducing car kilometres (see Table 7).
| Reducing the need to travel | Living well locally |
|---|---|
|
People need to and want to travel. Should look at reducing travel for work, travel for caring commitments and travel for leisure as three separate purposes. Transport Scotland need to gather and look at = statistics to understand proportion of travel in different parts of Scotland for different purposes. The pandemic has forced people to adopt technology and do things differently Appointments online when appropriate e.g. GP. Remote working decreases need to travel but can bring other negatives e.g. mental health. Things to your door rather than travelling to get them, but that can have environmental impacts too. |
High streets need revitalising. Planning permission for out of town shopping developments leads to displacement of people from their local communities. 20 minute neighbourhood has to be considered for urban and rural areas differently. Society needs to look up to, not down on people who use public transport. During the pandemic people have been replicating experiences at home without travelling. The need for leisure provision so you do not need to travel to a city to go out for a meal or to have a good time with friends. Even if we live well locally, we still need to travel to visit family or care for family in other parts of the country or the world. |
| Combining or sharing car trips | Switching modes |
|
Everyone has an independent life to live Car sharing only works for regular journeys if the arrangement is upheld between people. Coordinating lifts for events for you or children should be easy to arrange. Negotiating arrangements with other people is down to respect and agreements. Knowledge of social enterprises looking into car sharing schemes in rural locations. Lifts for older people needing to get to appointments are arranged by charities. Feeling this has been set back by the pandemic as not able to share car with someone outside your household. |
Need to understand options Need more options for particular travel pattern you take. Need to consider practicalities. During the pandemic an upsurge in walking, hopefully people will continue. Confidence to cycle on the road and respect by drivers of cyclists needs to be improved e.g. through the Cedar Foundation scheme. Much more complex issues in rural locations. Sometimes public transport takes longer and costs more than driving. |
In a poll participants were asked ‘What three things are most important to reduce your car use, or the car use of your friends and family?’. They could select up to three options. Improved access to public transport and more affordable public transport were the top results (see Figure 1).
Figure 1: Vote results on behaviour change
Selected in top 3:
- Improved access to public transport - 13
- More affordable public transport - 11
- Improved local services - 8
- Online alternatives to reduce the need to travel - 7
- Improved infrastructure for walking and cycling - 7
- Financial disincentives for car use - 2
- Improved local environments - 2
- Car-sharing options - 1
The post session evaluation gave participants another chance to make suggestions on this aim. Extra points raised included the importance of key figures in the public eye to lead by example.
MSPs and councillors should be setting the standards - currently they are driven around and use taxis to deliver paperwork - a them/us scenario needs to change”.
One participant was very frank that ease of use was a higher priority for them than climate action:
I don't care that my bus is net zero. All I want is a bus that turns up regularly.”
Another participant had connected climate targets back to affordability discussed the proceeding session.
Making public transport free would drastically reduce the car journeys and thus cut emissions.”
A desire was expressed to share any progress to achieving net zero targets through transport with the public.
Set ambitious targets, but update public regularly on achievements. Drive forward with success stories.”
Will Adapt to the Effects of Climate Change
NTS explains this outcome as:
Will adapt to the effects of climate change: in Scotland we are already experiencing the impacts of climate change and we will adapt our transport system to remain resilient and reduce the harmful effects on future generations.”
The Spotlight did not include planned discussion on this outcome. The post session evaluation gave participants another chance to make suggestions on this. It was clear from their comments, that not all understood what was meant by adaptation. Most comments related to the seriousness of climate change and the need for mitigation.
Will Promote Greener, Cleaner Choices
NTS explains this outcome as:
Over the next 20 years, Scotland will see a continued transformation in transport where sustainable travel options are people’s first choice if they need to travel. We will design our transport system so that walking, cycling and public and shared transport take precedence ahead of private car use.”
| Topic | Materials utilised |
|---|---|
| Car Clubs | Discussion Guide |
| 20 minute neighbourhoods | Discussion Guide |
| Parking levies | Discussion Guide |
The group discussion on parking levies included people with and without cars. The participants were very negative about the idea. Issues they raised are summarised as:
- Desire for the addressing of rural public transport before bringing in levies.
- Driving will be seen as even more of a status symbol for employers and employees who can afford to pay the levy.
- Revenue differential between local authorities would be huge.
- Risk that employers will pass on costs to employees.
- Employers should put on more transport provision to help e.g. shuttle buses.
The small group discussing 20 minute neighbourhoods were supportive of the idea based on potential benefits. The benefits raised included:
- Bringing people together in their local area.
- Reducing isolation.
- Aesthetics- design may be improved.
- Including green spaces
- Its focus on people within planning.
- Health care important to be nearby, but also leisure and places where “people can get together”.
Examples given included:
We sought this out, we moved from a village to an area in a city that had this 20 minute set up. There’s a nature reserve, the sea, woods, level walk, pub across the road, a local shop. So we’ve done it.”
They’ve just reclaimed an old bit of industrial land near me in Glasgow. And it’s great for cycling and it’s wheelchair accessible. What they are doing round the canal is brilliant. It’s not quite finished, but it’s certainly getting there.”
I saw this concept in Singapore back in the 90s where they had planned the housing and services around this so that public transport, walking and local hubs were built into local developments.”
People might not be familiar with the term 20 minute neighbourhood. But they will be familiar with localism, and community partnerships for people and businesses. That’s been going on in rural areas for years. Learn the localness from the rural areas and the planning from urban areas.”
Our local shop was going to close, but now it is community owned. We bought shares, we don’t make money from that, but it kept the shop going. This was an example of a community getting together and ensuring we have the services we want. Communities can take charge of what is available in their local area.”
In practice, most felt it was a ‘grand idea’ and practical recommendations they mentioned are summarised as:
- Should apply easily to towns and cities.
- Could be valuable to introduce for suburban areas- for example, creating hubs.
- Feeling that it was essential to think of this “in the round”, for example how is this contracted so that materials for new infrastructure are locally sourced. Otherwise, the participants pointed out this could end up having negative effects on the environment, not positive.
- Seen as a long-term process, not a quick fix.
- Community hubs not a new idea, have been created over time, especially as a way to bring communities together. But people are excluded from them implicitly.
- Local businesses need to buy into this, and even lead if they are not seeing any improvements from local government.
The group discussing car sharing were conscious that they were discussing these arrangements during a pandemic, when car sharing outwith households was not in line with the current regulations.
All the same, participants were supportive of the concept and shared examples of when they had done this for different purposes including:
- travel to work
- travel to events
- lifts for children to activities
- lifts for older people to access services
The participants raised schemes by charities in their local areas that were making progress on simplifying arrangements for car sharing. Utilising technology was seen as important in allowing people to connect with others in their local areas outside their own friends and family.
Safety was not raised as a concern. However, reliability of arrangements made between individuals was raised as important.
I had a bad experience with a car sharing arrangement when I lived near London. The person I made the arrangement with would end up doing overtime and I would have to hang around for up to two hours at the end of the day to get my lift back. I ended up getting the lift into work and then getting public transport home. It was frustrating because the arrangement was good, but in practice they couldn’t keep to it.”
Sharing journeys for events makes sense on an island. We have one secondary school and there’s lots of events there. So people are really open to sharing lifts and arranging that on social media.”
We can learn a lot from coordination during the pandemic. Community volunteers were bringing in older people for their vaccinations. Helping people get from a to b who can’t themselves.”