Greener Travels Ahead
Every year, Singapore’s vehicles (about a million in total) release around 6.4 million tonnes of carbon emissions, which makes up about 15% of the city-state’s total emissions.
In 2019, Singapore’s private cars, which mostly run on internal combustion engines (ICEs), contributed the largest share of land transport emissions.
How so? Well, commuting on an internal combustion engine (ICE) car for 1-hour generates 7.2kg of carbon emissions per passenger. Switching to an electric car reduces this by half while taking the MRT cuts this carbon footprint by 85%!
It goes without saying that choosing public transport would contribute to a lighter carbon footprint!
As part of the goal to move towards a “Car-Lite” Singapore, and reduce our carbon footprint, the Government has set out plans regarding our nation’s transport in the Singapore Green Plan 2030. The Green Plan, our national sustainability agenda, states an ambitious goal of increasing peak-period mass public transport trips from 64% to 75% by 2030.
Let’s look at how our commutes will be getting greener.
- Expanding and Enhancing our Public Transport
Over the next decade, new lines such as the Thomson-East Coast Line, Jurong Region Line and Cross Island Line will be added to the MRT network, and extensions are in the works for the North East Line, Circle Line, and the Downtown Line.
The cornerstone of doing so would be to increase our train network from 245km today to 360km by the early 2030s. This will bring 8 in 10 homes within a 10-minute walk from a train station!
Currently, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) also has a fleet of 60 electric buses playing the road.
Apart from trains and buses, LTA aims for 9 in 10 peak-period journeys to be made via Walk-Cycle-Ride modes of transport (which include public and shared transport such as taxis and private hire cars), and to have 100 percent greener, cleaner energy public bus and taxi fleets by 2040.
2. Optimising our Walkways through Pedestrianisation
Walking is the most eco-friendly means of transport. And across Singapore, there are more than 200km of sheltered walkways, shielding you from the sun or rain as you walk from your home to nearby MRT stations, bus stops, or even schools, and healthcare facilities. As part of the Green Plan’s efforts, roads will be repurposed and pedestrianisation will be implemented wherever possible.
While you’re on your feet, why not check out this DIY walking trail from NParks which is a handy downloadable guide that shows you the difficulty level of the respective trail, as well as information on the landmarks you’d get to see along the way.
Of course, getting your cardio in by walking also has many health benefits from reducing stress, improving sleep quality, and keeping you fit and healthy!
3. Making Singapore more Bicycle-friendly
Do you prefer cycling to reduce your carbon footprint instead? Look for park connectors and cycling paths that can shorten your trip. By 2030, the cycling path network islandwide will increase to around 1,300km.
Before you head out, plan your route with LTA’s Cycling Route map, or Google Maps’ cycling feature with step-by-step cycling directions, taking you through dedicated cycling paths, and recommended bicycle-friendly roads.
You’ll be seeing Singapore in a new light — from her skyline to coastline, and forest to mangrove, there’s no better time to explore Singapore!
4. Encouraging Sustainable Car Ownership
Apart from being the only country to have a zero-growth policy for most vehicles, Singapore plans to further reduce emissions by encouraging the switch to cleaner-energy vehicles.
The government aims to phase out Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles by 2040 while all newly registered cars and taxis will be of cleaner-energy models starting from 2030. And from 2025, Singapore will ban the registration of diesel cars and taxis.
With more Electric Vehicles (EVs) to hit roads, the government aims to roll out 60,000 EV charging stations across Singapore by 2030. Many of these will be easily accessible in malls or public parking areas.
All HDB car parks in at least 8 towns — Ang Mo Kio, Bedok, Choa Chu Kang, Jurong West, Punggol, Queenstown, Sembawang and the upcoming Tengah town — will be fitted with EV chargers by 2025.
5. What you can do: Carpool whenever possible!
Realistically, some of us will still be driving, but this doesn’t mean we can’t try to cut down our carbon footprint!
If you must drive a personal vehicle, share the ride with others. This not only lets you spend time with one another but also allows all carpoolers to simultaneously reduce their carbon footprint!
Fun fact: Speeding leads to harder braking, which consumes more petrol and as a result, increases your carbon emissions. Always drive safely! It’s better for the environment too!
Keeping our carbon emissions in check
Carbon emissions contribute to global warming, and warmer climates mean glaciers are melting which lead to rising sea levels and extreme weather events. Our carbon footprint measures the total amount of carbon emissions (including carbon dioxide and methane) through our individual actions and activities. So it’s important to keep our carbon footprint in check.
To help you do that, here are two useful links:
- Carbon Calculator: By answering a few quick questions on food, energy, and travel consumption, this website by SP Group can estimate your annual emissions. A great way to see where you can inculcate greener habits in your daily lives.
- Fuel Cost Calculator: Depending on how clean your vehicle’s emissions are, vehicle emission schemes grant rebates or impose surcharges on car owners. Which makes this tool perfect for comparing fuel economy and carbon emissions across vehicle models.
With an expanding public transport network, covered walkways, and cycling paths, it’s going to be easier than ever to get to where we need to go, all while upholding the Singapore Green Plan’s pillars of Energy Reset and Sustainable Living.
Our vehicles will be of cleaner energy models and adopting EVs as our personal mode of transport will contribute to reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
It’s going to take a bit of getting used to, but the Green Plan will make our future a more sustainable one. So, let’s say goodbye to our current carbon emissions, and hello to greener travels!
