A transport industry captain has stated that the Cop28 summit ought to be the time when the world moves toward “real implementation” of its pledges to reduce emissions.
The International Association of Public Transport’s secretary general, Mohamed Mezghani, stated that the summit in Dubai was the “last chance” to decarbonize in accordance with the 1.5°C global warming target.
He stated to The National that other cities could use Dubai’s expansion of low-emission public transportation as a model.
Mass travel suppliers are promoting their industry’s part in handling environmental change at a culmination in Barcelona this week where they have featured the discharges saved by keeping away from or sharing vehicles.
By switching to electric, hybrid, or hydrogen-powered vehicles, operators such as Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority are also promising to reduce emissions from buses and taxis.
After no day of talks was devoted to countries’ transport policies at Cop27 in Egypt, Mr. Mezghani stated that he was having discussions about the sector’s place on the Cop28 agenda.
“It will be crucial for Cop28 to approach transportation from a policy rather than a technology perspective. It entails putting a strong emphasis on the role that sustainable mobility and public transportation play in reducing CO2 emissions,” he stated.
“There’s no need to focus on taking responsibilities any longer. Implementation is the key. I anticipate that we will demonstrate actual implementation at Cop28.
Although personal automobiles and commercial vehicles account for the majority of emissions, transportation accounts for about a quarter of global emissions. To maintain private vehicle sales, a significant portion of the automobile industry is betting on an electric future.
Many significant economies have vowed to slice net discharges to zero by 2050 to check the most terrible impacts of a worldwide temperature alteration.
A statement by many vehicle supervisors on Tuesday likewise featured the business’ job in working on metropolitan life and air quality and lessening clamor contamination.
“If we want to decarbonize, Cop 28 will be very important because it is also our last chance. We want to advance quicker,” said Mr Mezghani, who with different authorities took a train from Brussels to Barcelona during the current week’s highest point.
Mr. Mezghani previously traveled to the UK for the Cop26 summit in 2021 by train from Paris to Glasgow.
The most recent round of UN climate talks will begin on November 30 in Dubai’s Expo City. The emirate will likewise have the following however one worldwide vehicle highest point in 2026, it was reported on Sunday.
In Barcelona, representatives of Dubai’s RTA discussed their plans to have flying taxis by 2026, regular taxis that will no longer use gasoline beginning in 2027, and an all-electric bus fleet by 2050.
Since 2006, Dubai’s use of public transportation has more than tripled.
The worldwide vehicle body has a provincial office in Dubai, which is showing the way by getting new innovation, for example, the world’s longest driverless metro and endeavoring to decarbonise transports and cabs, Mr Mezghani said.
He stated that other projects in the Middle East and North Africa, such as the planned Riyadh metro and World Cup-related developments in Qatar, could serve as models for the rest of the world.
Mr. Mezghani, a Tunisian who has served as the organization’s secretary general since 2018, said, “Dubai could be a model for a number of cities in terms of acceleration of the development of public transportation.”
The Mena region is making good progress. What we can realize is the speed of execution, particularly in the Bay, between the time the choice is taken and the time it is carried out – a lot more limited than in Europe for instance.
In the Mena region, I believe, they are aware that public transportation could benefit cities, tourism, and economic growth. Even though most of their cities were built for cars, they know that public transportation could help the city.
