Switching just 10 per cent of buses, cars and vans to hybrid or battery-electric vehicles would cut Ireland’s annual emissions by some 0.35 million tonnes – the equivalent of removing 100,000 cars from the roads, a report said today.
The study said fuel-intensive public transport and services such as police forces, would benefit most from the efficiencies generated by hybrid power.
The report for the statutory body Sustainable Energy Ireland (SEI) also says a wider policy review should ensure obstacles to the introduction of such vehicles in Ireland are minimised.
It also encourages a review of the taxation system following the introduction of the new VRT regulations in July, as well as the existing regulations on non-conventional vehicles.
In 2006 the transport sector was the only sector in the economy not to see either reductions in energy-related C02 emissions or low levels of growth compared with the previous year, the report said.
The sector recorded a 7.1 per cent growth in emissions in 2006 compared to the previous year. Transport now accounts for 35 per cent of energy-related emissions, SEI said.