COMMUTERS and transport providers can glimpse the future of ‘clean and green’ travel when a European initiative rolls into Newry next week.
Organised by South West College, the event on June 11 is the second stage in the Repute (Renewable Public Transport Enterprise) tour that will kick off in Glasgow and continue on to destinations in France, Spain and Portugal.
Co-funded by Interreg Atlantic Area Programme, the unique ‘conference on the move’ is part of an 18-month international project aimed at developing new ideas to improve public transport by lowering carbon emissions and costs.
Shirley Patterson, Repute project officer at South West College, said: “The transport sector is the fastest growing source of green-house gas emissions in Europe and that is on course to continue to rise at about 6% per year.
“Sustainable public transport has significant implications for emission reduction, but as this project has shown there are also considerable gains to be made in terms of affordability and accessibility.
“The tour comes at an important time as policy makers consider how to best maximise limited budgets, yet ensure public transport is delivered effectively, particularly outside of urban centres.
“Our research offers a single point of reference for the range of challenges in rural areas and weighs up the approaches and technologies that can make the greatest impact. The tour is about showing how ‘clean and green’ can also be efficient and affordable.”
Terry Waugh, deputy director of Action Renewables, said: “Repute brings forward a breadth of new options that have been successfully tried elsewhere and identifies solutions that can be tailored to make the biggest difference here.
“This is an ambitious project that brings together some of the world-leading specialists, advanced technologies and exciting ideas that will impact directly on our lives in forthcoming years.”