Metrolink and the environment

Walking and cycling are the most environmentally friendly ways to get around. They're good for your health, and produce no harmful pollution.

But if you can't make your journey by foot or by bike, what's the best way to travel to minimise the impact on the environment?

How is transport pollution measured?

Pollution is measured in grams of carbon dioxide produced for every passenger kilometre travelled: usually called 'carbon emissions'.

If four people travel together in one car, there are fewer emissions per passenger kilometre than if they went alone in four separate cars.

In the same way, buses and trams that are full of passengers are indirectly less harmful to the environment than ones carrying just a few people because passengers in the full bus or tram are not using other transport and adding to pollution levels.

Transport and carbon emissions

Public transport is more efficient and environmentally-friendly than cars, motorbikes and most other ways to get around:

• Walking and cycling produce no grams of carbon emissions per passenger kilometre
• Trains produce 44 grams
• Metrolink trams produce 54 grams
• Buses produce 99 grams
• Motorbikes produce 117 grams
• Cars produce 123 grams
• Black cab taxis produce 218 grams
• Planes produce 221 grams

Lowering Metrolink emissions

We expect to see more people switching to Metrolink from cars and buses as new routes bring trams to more areas. The more people that use the trams, the more the overall emissions figure will come down because the system is operating more efficiently.

And as more people use the trams instead of environmentally-unfriendly alternatives, the overall pollution levels in Greater Manchester will come down.

Metrolink's cleaner, greener energy

The Metrolink system can achieve low pollution levels because the trams are powered by electricity produced from modern, cleaner, greener sources – around 70% of a tram’s power comes from wind or solar / photovoltaic sources as does the power on stop.

The rest is from other environmentally friendly sources like recycling waste, water power and wind.

Metrolink is friendly to the environment in many other ways too, for example:

• Trams produce no exhaust fumes at all
• Trams cause almost no noise, except when they sound a horn to warn pedestrians and traffic
• Trams have steel wheels, not rubber tyres: steel wheels are much more efficient, and when they're finally worn out, the steel is recycled with much less impact on the environment than getting rid of old rubber tyres.

Find out more

For more about transport and the environment see cleanairgm.com