The challenge

Nationally, transport is the largest contributor to carbon emissions and remains largely reliant on fossil fuels. In Herefordshire, transport accounts for 36% of our emissions.

Transport has a significant impact on nature including wildlife being hit by vehicles, isolation of animal populations who are unable to cross roads, as well as disturbance and pollution.

Climate change is bringing additional, new challenges for transport. Flooding, landslips, heat and other extreme weather events will all have a major impact on the transport network and local travel. In order to have a resilient transport network, adaptations and additional maintenance will be required.

Much of Herefordshire is rural with limited access to public transport and the county has an elderly and increasingly ageing population. This makes access to services difficult and encourages car use.

• 86% of people own one or more cars in the county.

Car usage in Hereford is high. 40% of journeys start and end in the city every day. This a major contributor to traffic congestion, CO2 emissions and physical inactivity.

• 40% of motor vehicle trips in Hereford begin and end within the city (i.e. intra-city trips)
• 27% of motor vehicle trips begin outside the city and end in the city
• 25% of motor vehicle trips begin in the city and end outside the city

Transport plays a central role in communities. It enables access to education, work, shopping, leisure and social interaction. We need to reduce emissions from transport while creating an environment that will still allow businesses to flourish and residents to access employment, education and vital services.

Many factors influence how and when people choose to travel:

• Distance
• Access to vehicles
• Access to transport infrastructure
• Affordability
• Safety considerations
• Age, health and fitness
• Availability of broadband, reduces the need to travel

Please see the Herefordshire Council Local Transport Plan and Hereford Transport Strategy Review for more statistics on transport in Herefordshire.

The solutions

Many solutions bring wider benefits to the county. For example, the health benefits of walking and cycling, and a reduction in air pollution due to low carbon journeys.

• Reduce the need to travel - through harnessing technology and relocating services in to communities
• Increase access to active travel - by promoting and supporting people to walk and ride bikes for everyday journeys
• Reduce the number of high carbon emission journeys - by making it easier to carry out journeys in lower carbon vehicles