Oslo Train Spotting
by April Streeter, Gothenburg, Sweden on 10.16.07
Photo courtesy Oslo Sporveier
Riders used to the signature red subway cars clattering along in Norway's capital city for decades are now encountering shiny white, highly-efficient new models being swapped into service by the Oslo transit authority. The new trains, made by Siemens Transport Division in Vienna, emit around 2.6 grams of carbon dioxide per kilometer traveled (for the metrically challenged think of it as 2/10ths of an ounce per mile). Over a 30-year lifetime that means 825 tons of CO2. So how good are those stats? Pretty good, it seems - the UK's Aviation Environment Federation calculates efficient cars emit about 100-130 grams of CO2 per kilometer traveled, and long-haul planes about twice that amount.
Part of the Oslo subway's eco-benefit is due to Norway's heavy use of large hydro for electricity generation - all that North Sea oil and gas goes for export. But the new white subway trains also achieve 40 percent better efficiency than older cars by recouping energy through regenerative braking. With their molded aluminum shells, the new cars are far lighter than the old red ones, and are designed to be 94 percent recyclable at the end of their lifespans. Siemens' project manager Martin Salender is convinced Oslo's subway, when all the 100+ new trains get into action, will have the smallest carbon footprint of any subway system anywhere. The only way to test that hypothesis, however, is if other transport systems apply life-cycle analysis. And too bad Norway's ballooning moose population, now topping 100,000, isn't helping the country's ambitious climate goals. An adult moose can each year emit as much as 100 kilos (that's 100,000 grams) of the greenhouse gas methane through burps and, uh, flatulence.
::Oslo Sporveier (in Norwegian and English)
Thirsty for more? Check out these related articles:
They are electric, so how do they emit CO2?
90 % of norways electicity is from hydropower, only sometimes we import coal power from denmark.. :-/
Is this standariced caluclations regardless of where the trains operate?
And the elks... Yes they fart metahne, they allways have done, its part of the natural cyclus.. This type of caluclator "sience" are stupid, we need to fokus on fossil sources, not natural emisons..
There is more elks now than before since there is hardly any wolfs anymore :-( and forresting gives plenty of food... The forrest is larger than it has been for hundreds of years now in norway..
how much co2 would they generate if (worst case) all electricity was coal generated?
(important for countries with little green electricity)
how do they compare in transit speed to the old cars? (important because public transit is at a significant speed disadvantage wrt cars, scooters, and bikes (electric or not))
I think thats really good, very small emissions - way to go norway!
BTW: Oslo is a great city :)
the UK's Aviation Environment Federation calculates efficient cars emit about 100-130 grams of CO2 per kilometer traveled, and long-haul planes about twice that amount.
Seeing as the Prius puts out 104 g/km and that the new Boeing 787 is twice as carbon-efficient as the Prius per passenger-km, I find the above claim to be grossly erroneous.
As for the train, thanks for pointing out why it has such low emissions rates. It would be radically different running on US power and with our low transit utilization rates.
Let me know when Norway stops getting rich off of petroleum and slaying whales, then I'll consider their green cred.
I would add to Norway's carbon emissions the total carbon emitted from the fossil fuel it exports to other countries that is in turn burned and adds to global warming and pollution!
Norway may be clean but it mines petrolium from the sea and ships it out for others to burn. That is no different than mining and burning fossil fuel all in the same country.
Pollution is a world problem. If Norway stopped mining fossil fuel, maybe, this article would be good for Treehugger. But just what IS Norways true contribution to global warming and pollution when you tally in the petroleum it sells?