Our commitment to the environment
Providing the most sustainable intercity network in the UK
Think you know your carbon emissions?
Select which has the lower CO2 emissions
The CO2 lowdown...
1 roll of toilet roll (virgin paper)
730g CO2e
4 full loads of washing 40°C and tumble-dried
6kg CO2e
Coventry to Birmingham alone in an average diesel car (24 miles)
6.6kg CO2e
A pint of UK cow's milk
1.1kg CO2e
A bottle of wine from Australia
1.5kg CO2e
Big Mac from McDonalds
2.4kg CO2e
London to Edinburgh on a coach per passenger (403 miles)
17.74kg CO2e
1 year's worth of tap water
18kg CO2e
1 pair of men's jeans to produce
19kg CO2e
London to Birmingham alone in an average diesel car (118 miles)
32.4kg CO2e
London to Hong Kong business class return flight
10 tonnes CO2e
A 3 bedroom terrace new build home (bricks & mortar)
32 tonnes CO2e
Our journey to net zero
We take our environmental responsibilities very seriously, and we recognise that we have an important part to play in reducing emissions and combating climate change.
This is why it’s our vision to be the UK’s most sustainable coach company.
One coach can take up to one mile of cars off the road and just a 15% increase in coach passenger journeys by people in the UK each year could save over a quarter of a million tonnes of carbon dioxide. Reducing reliance on car travel also reduces noise pollution, improves air quality, and helps to tackle social inequality.
Because of this, we have committed to making our coach fleet zero emission by 2035 - ahead of the UK net zero target of 2050.
Don't just take our word for it, look at the figures below on the performance of our vehicles, which show how they compare to other transport modes.
The future of sustainable mobility
As part of National Express Group, we have a collective commitment to driving a more sustainable approach to travel across the globe.
Our 2023 Sustainability report outlines our progression to date and our plans for the future.
Our Fleet
Our core white coach fleet is Euro VI standard - the highest engine emission standard available. The Levante III Euro VI coach specification is bespoke and exclusive to National Express. We tested its emissions performance in early 2020:
- Our Levante III produces an average of 21.7 grams of greenhouse gas emission (GHG) at tailpipe per passenger kilometre at 100% passenger capacity.
- In an urban environment, our Levante III produces 13.6% less GHG emissions per passenger kilometre than other types of Euro VI coaches on the road today.
- Based on the Department for Transport’s latest data on transport emissions, an average of 33 grams of GHG per passenger kilometre is produced when travelling by coach, when considering both direct and indirect emissions.
Grams of greenhouse gas per passenger km when travelling by:
Key
Direct emissions: emissions produced by the vehicle itself.
Indirect emissions: emissions produced by the extraction, refining, and transportation of the fuel used to power the vehicle. For electric vehicles, this includes the generation and transmission of electricity.
Indirect effects: complex effects produced by greenhouse gases interacting with the atmosphere, e.g. contrails produced by planes in the atmosphere, which reflect sunlight. Due to their complexity, their GHG effect is uncertain and what is presented here is a central estimate. Indirect effects are only included in the calculation of air travel in our analysis.
Sources and references
Carbon emissions game
REFERENCE FOR THE BOOK: Berners-Lee, M. (2020) How bad are bananas: The carbon footprint of everything. London: Profile Books.
1 Year’s worth of tap water (Typical UK Citizen) = 18 kg CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 15
1 Pair of Men’s Jeans (cotton) to produce = 19 kg CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 104
Coventry to Birmingham in a car alone (24 miles) = 6.6 kg CO2e
Reference: DfT emissions from journeys across the UK, by mode, 2022 (assuming single occupancy car)
3 Full Loads of Washing At 40 °C and tumble-dried = 6 kg CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 89
A Bottle of Wine from Australia = 1.5 kg CO2e
Reference: Carbon Footprint of Australian Wine
Big Mac from McDonalds = 2.4kg CO2e
Reference: Plant Based News Article
A pint of UK cow’s milk = 1.1kg CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 77
1 Roll of Toilet Roll (virgin paper) = 730g CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 56
Virgin paper is a type of paper that does not contain any recycled content and is made directly of the pulp of trees or cotton.
New-build 3 bedroom terrace, bricks and mortar = 32 tonnes CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 154
Return Business Class flight to Hong Kong from London = 10 tonnes CO2e
Reference: Book: How Bad Are Bananas? (New Edition) Page: 140
London to Edinburgh on a Coach per passenger (403 miles) = 17.74 kg CO2e
London to Birmingham in an Average Diesel Car Alone (118 miles) = 32.4 kg CO2e
Reference: DfT emissions from journeys across the UK, by mode, 2022 (assuming single occupancy car)
Coach
NX Cataeno Euro VI Levante III Coach measured at full capacity emits 21.7g CO2 per KM per passenger - Source: LowCVP Independent Assessment of Euro VI coach diesel emissions 2020.
Department for Transport’s Transport and environment statistics report, October 2022
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/transport-and-environment-statistics-2022/transport-and-environment-statistics-2022
Department for Transport's Energy and environment data tables
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/energy-and-environment-data-tables-env
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