No. H145/06
For release November 14, 2006

CANADA’S NEW GOVERNMENT PROVIDES
ONLINE TOOL TO HELP CITIES REDUCE
GREENHOUSE GASES AND POLLUTING EMISSIONS

OTTAWA − Transport Canada has launched a new online tool that helps cities estimate the annual impact on greenhouse gases and other emissions from transportation-related projects such as new transit or roads.

"This Government is focused on improving the environment in Canada by taking realistic action to reduce both air pollution and greenhouse gases," said the Honourable Maxime Bernier, Minister of Industry, on behalf of the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities.

"The Urban Transportation Emissions Calculator is a simple and user-friendly tool that demonstrates the Government of Canada’s commitment to work with cities to protect the environment," said Minister Cannon. "This tool helps cities reduce greenhouse gases and protect the health of Canadians."

The Urban Transportation Emissions Calculator is an Internet-based tool for urban transportation professionals to calculate transportation-related emissions, including greenhouse gases and criteria air contaminants (e.g. carbon, nitrous and sulphur oxides, volatile organic compounds and particles). The tool calculates both direct and indirect emissions from passenger, commercial and urban transit vehicles. Direct emissions are released directly from the tailpipe of a vehicle, while indirect emissions are created and released from the production of electricity used by electric vehicles as well as from the production, refining and transportation of transportation fuels.

The Urban Transportation Emissions Calculator also allows municipalities to plan and report transport-related emissions in a more standardized manner. It considers the impacts of new technologies and alternative fuels on greenhouse gas emissions and air pollutants based on existing technologies and available data.

In addition to the Emissions Calculator, Transport Canada provides a wide variety of resources to help Canadian municipalities implement transportation solutions through the Urban Transportation Information Network at www.tc.gc.ca/utsp.

The Urban Transportation Emissions Calculator is available online at www.tc.gc.ca/UTEC.

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Backgrounder:
URBAN TRANSPORTATION EMISSIONS CALCULATOR

What is it?

The Urban Transportation Emissions Calculator is an Internet-based tool for urban transportation professionals to calculate transportation related emissions, including greenhouse gases and criteria air contaminants (e.g. carbon, nitrous and sulphur oxides, volatile organic compounds and particles).

Users of the tool can input data such as the number of kilometres travelled by vehicles, average travel speeds and vehicle fuelling characteristics.

The calculator helps to build capacity in municipalities and allows standardized planning and reporting on emissions from transportation projects.

How will cities use it?

This tool may be beneficial to municipalities in addressing their reporting requirements related to the investment of federal gas tax funding ($5 billion over five years) or in preparing funding requests for other infrastructure programs. The federal gas tax funding allows municipalities to invest in projects that will achieve three main outcomes: reductions in GHG emissions, along with cleaner air and cleaner water.

What does it do?

The tool estimates greenhouse gas and air contaminant emissions for the following vehicles:

• light-duty passenger vehicles (e.g. automobiles, light trucks);
• light-duty commercial vehicles;
• heavy-duty commercial vehicles;
• public transit buses;
• public transit trolley buses;
• light rail/Metro (electric and diesel); and
• heavy rail (diesel).

The tool calculates both the direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with the operation of vehicles. Direct greenhouse gas emissions are released from the tailpipe of a vehicle. Indirect greenhouse gas emissions are created and released from the production of electricity used by electric vehicles (i.e., trolleys and light rail) as well as from the production, refining and transportation of transportation fuels (i.e., from wells to pump). The tool does not, however, address life-cycle emissions associated with the manufacture and end of life recycling of vehicles. Due to the unavailability of appropriate emission factors, only direct criteria air contaminant emissions are estimated.

The tool also considers the impacts of new technologies and alternative fuels on greenhouse gas and criteria air contaminant emissions based on existing technologies and available data. The table below shows the different fuel types that can be entered in the tool.

Vehicle-technology combinations

The calculator also requires the user to select the province or the municipality of interest and the study year. This allows the user of the calculator to account for the varied provincial breakdowns of light-duty passenger vehicles (i.e., proportion of automobiles versus light trucks) as well as the differing greenhouse gas intensities associated with electricity production in each province. It also allows the selection of a modelling year in five-year increments from 2006 through 2031 (to correspond with Census years), as vehicle fuel efficiencies and other emission factors are predicted to improve in the future.

Glossary
CNG: Compressed natural gas
LNG: Liquid natural gas
LDPV: Light-duty passenger vehicles
LDCV: Light-duty commercial vehicles
HDCV: Heavy-duty commercial vehicles

November 2006