The problem of global warming caused by the growth of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is constantly heard in the speeches of prominent figures and organizations involved in the environment. Despite the fact that this idea is questioned, often quite reasonably, the presence of large-scale environmental pollution by various vehicles is very acute.

Yes, the facts say that the carbon dioxide generated by all industry and cars can be estimated at only a few percent of the level of harm that is caused by the eruption of an average volcano. But humanity cannot ignore the problem of other emissions. To reduce harm to nature, ecological transport is being developed that is convenient for people and safe for the ecosphere.

Modern engines can be called the height of environmental friendliness when compared with their predecessors half a century ago. The use of biodiesel, the constant reduction in the level of harmful substances in the exhaust, set by safety standards, has a positive effect on the atmosphere of cities.

However, the constant increase in the number of cars on the roads does not lead to a reduction in environmental damage. To the most visible dangerous features modern transport relate:

• the presence of carbon monoxide in the exhaust, which is deadly to humans and other living organisms;
• the presence of salts of heavy metals deposited in the soil;
• the presence of active substances of acid, alkaline groups, which, when dissolved in precipitation, affect the soil, building structures, and pollute groundwater.

The environmental problems of transport are not limited to emissions and engine-related hazards. The area of ​​harmful effects includes leakage of oils, fuels, soot emissions, inevitable in diesel engines. Damage to nature is also caused by the extraction of raw materials for the production of gasoline and diesel, as well as its processing.

What characterizes ecological transport

Eco-friendly cars minimize all emissions to the environment to the limit. Modern engineering ideas, implemented "in metal" and used on the roads, are familiar to many, for example, in the form public transport. Other environmentally friendly vehicles are either hybrid, using less fuel, or built without engines. internal combustion.

Public transport

Familiar to all environmentally friendly modes of transport - public trolleybuses, trams, metro. This part of the infrastructure of cities, if we evaluate a specific vehicle, seems ideal. No harmful substances are emitted into the air, there is no soot, there is no large-scale atmospheric smoke. The ecology of this type of transport is attractive, but somewhat controversial.

1. Public transport is used during the daytime.
2. The required capacity of the power grid is very high.
3. There are large energy leaks due to network damage, short circuits, and various emergencies.

As a result, there is an increase in the load on electricity producers. Thermal power plants burn more fuel, increasing emissions into the atmosphere. It is very difficult to regulate the load by time of day using public electric transport. Therefore, humanity needs another way out.

hybrid cars

Popular and familiar to all, hybrids are a car in which the internal combustion engine runs in a stable, controlled manner. Part of the load is taken by the secondary electrical system drive. Ecological transport of this kind operates according to the following scheme:

• while driving on the highway cruising speed or an internal combustion engine operates with a small range of its change;
• in urban mode, when speed is not needed, but constant acceleration and deceleration are required, the car is driven by an electric motor;
• while in the city, the internal combustion engine provides only the operation of the air conditioner, as well as the electric generator that recharges the car's batteries.

Environmentally friendly hybrid transport significantly reduces emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere. Total fuel consumption drops by up to 50% (for vehicles that mostly drive in the city). But on long trips on the highway, the advantages of hybrids come to naught.

Battery electric vehicles

Battery-only electric vehicles are recognized by many experts as the most convenient and sustainable solution. Today, a wide range of models are mass-produced - from pickups, for example, trademark"Chevrolet", capable of going from one charge under load up to 240 km, up to small cars for individual or family use. Such ecological modes of transport solve several problems at once:

• electric vehicles do not emit harmful substances into the atmosphere;
• performance characteristics of engineering solutions are very attractive: models
• "Nissan", capable of being charged even from a conventional electrical network of an apartment, can go up to 400 km from a single charge;
• battery capacities are restored at night, which makes it possible to balance the load on the electricity generation infrastructure.

It becomes clear why more and more companies offer their developments of electric vehicles on the market. The distribution of this type of transport is limited - in some countries, there are no systems of standards and laws governing the taxation, rules for the use and maintenance of such individual vehicles.

But in a number of states, an electric car has become a familiar means of transport, and there is even an infrastructure for fast charging batteries from powerful energy sources.

Transport on solar batteries and induction propulsion

A solar-powered car has long been present in the works of science fiction and various films about the future. This type of transport exists. Its development is still hampered by an undoubted shortcoming:

• the movement of the car can only take place during the day;
• batteries capable of providing traction in the evening and at night make the engineering solution heavier, increase the cost of the car, and reduce the overall dynamics.

Solar-powered personal vehicles are not offered on the market. But public transport is already functioning. Off-the-shelf, existing and used solutions include solar-powered buses running on routes in Australian cities.

Another example is the mini-trains for tourists launched in Hungary. Implements solar-powered public transport projects in China and other countries with high industrial potential.

Another interesting type of eco-friendly vehicle is powered in the same way as smartphones with wireless charging. The energy source is a cable laid under the road. By induction, electricity is transferred to motors. Such buses run through the streets of Paris (Jeweline project), in the parks of America and Japan.

Another scheme for the use of induction was found by Swedish engineers. Shuttle Buses Scania Citiwide are built like electric cars. They are battery powered and move freely. Recharging stations based on the induction principle are located directly in the public network stop zones. This gave the transport mobility and at the same time the ability to move as long as you like, without being tied to the power supply line laid under the road.

Non-battery equipped induction buses offer another advantage. They don't need a driver. The route is clearly calibrated, passes where the power cable is laid under the road. At the same time, the speed of the vehicle is easy to control, it is even possible to track the position of a particular vehicle on the way, organizing a safe mode.

But on the scale of a large city, where there are many participants traffic, the tracking system is difficult to implement. Therefore, cable-powered buses move so far only in the areas of tourist routes in parks or clearly localized areas of cities.

We are for an environmentally friendly lifestyle - and in travel as well. This time we deal with what type of transport to choose and why.

What does "eco-friendly transport" mean?

You may come across the expressions green transport, green transport, sustainable transport (or sustainable transport system), sustainable transport. They all mean the same thing - transport that has a minimal impact on the environment and climate change. Ideally, such transportation contributes to social justice and social connections (this is, for example, the advantage of convenient public transport over private cars) and uses energy from renewable sources (rather than oil, which will sooner or later run out). Read more about sustainable transport.

Why is it important?

Another criterion is the source of transport energy. Almost always it is worth giving preference to electric transport. Ideally, this is energy from renewable sources. Another important point is new models of transport. difference between aircraft old model and an aircraft with a new engine can be enormous: a reduction in CO2 emissions of up to 20%. Compare outliers different types transport, depending on the fuel and workload, you can use this plate.

To find out the amount of CO2 emissions, there are several calculators (for example, or ) that you can use to calculate the environmental impact of your trip, indicating the type of transport, distance and number of trips. The program will give you the amount of CO2 produced and may give you carbon offset options that you can transfer money to: most often these are programs for planting trees, reforestation, installing windmills or solar panels.

I often fly by plane and travel by bus, I feel guilty before nature. What can be done?

Pay attention to whether carriers provide data on CO2 emissions and whether it is possible to make a compensation contribution: often it is enough to tick one more box when buying a ticket and pay a couple of euros more. This money will go to environmental projects around the world. This can be done, for example, with a company positioning itself as an environmentally friendly company (they also use modern buses and urge not to print tickets). Airlines also have emissions offset programs. Even if there is no opportunity to contribute, you can always compensate for emissions yourself through various funds (see link in the previous paragraph).

It is important to remember that the process of transporting you and your suitcase from one point to another is only part of the cost. There is also the cost of the transport itself, its service life and the method of disposal - indirect costs that are difficult to calculate for one trip. And don't forget that manufacturers like to use words like "green" and "environmentally friendly" without any special rights, just to get attention. So always check what specific actions and indicators are hidden behind it.

Three-quarters of urban passenger traffic by 2030 will be carried out by metro, electric buses, gas-powered buses and other environmentally friendly transport. Izvestia was told about such plans in the Ministry of Transport. So far, in Russia only half is environmentally friendly passenger traffic. The Ministry of Natural Resources notes that emissions from vehicles are growing and the current level of pollution is fraught with more than 80 diseases for citizens.

By 2030, in the largest cities and urban agglomerations, at least 70–75% of passenger traffic should be carried out by environmentally friendly transport, according to the Ministry of Transport. This was reported to Izvestia in the department.

We are talking about buses operating on natural gas, and transport with electric motors - trams, trolleybuses, subways, electric trains, cars and hybrids, funiculars, cable cars, electric buses and so on. According to Rosstat data for 2017, on average, eco-friendly transport accounted for slightly more than half of urban passenger traffic across the country. About 47% of urban passenger traffic was made by buses and fixed-route taxis. Most of them are not environmentally friendly: 95% of buses run on diesel fuel, according to the data of the interregional trade union of public transport workers.

The Ministry of Transport assumes that the transition to environmentally friendly transport will reduce the negative impact on the environment.

Motor transport is one of the main sources of air pollution in large cities, according to the latest final report of the Ministry of Natural Resources, presented on the agency's website. The volume of emissions from vehicles continues to increase and in 2017 amounted to 14.5 million tons, the document states.

The impact of environmental hazards on health is associated with more than 80 diseases and types of injuries. By providing a healthier environment, 13 million deaths in the world could be prevented annually, the report of the Ministry of Natural Resources says.

Almost all buses in Russia run on diesel fuel, their re-equipment will require capital investments, said Yury Dashkov, chairman of the interregional trade union of public transport workers. Now there are about 30 "gas" passenger car parks in the country (two of them in Moscow). The conversion of a diesel bus to gas costs 60-80 thousand rubles, the expert said. At the same time, the blue fuel itself is almost one and a half times cheaper, he noted. Also, gas stations for refueling buses will have to be installed in car parks - they will cost about 1 million rubles each, Yuri Dashkov said.

Many European countries, such as the Netherlands and France, are already actively using urban electric transport, and Russia should take this experience into service, says Alexander Lytkin, an expert at the National Expert Council for Training and Testing Drivers. However, a full transition to electric transport is impractical due to the high price of electricity, he said.

Gas is considered the most environmentally friendly type of fuel in the world, as it burns without the formation of smoke, said Alexander Pavlov, director of operations at FM Logistic. When using it motor oil can be changed twice as often, he added. Due to the cheapness of fuel, gas transport is popular in India, Colombia, and Pakistan, the expert said.

Earlier it became known that sales of electric vehicles in Russia grew by 72% in eight months compared to the period from January to August 2017. However, there are still only about 2.5 thousand electric cars in Russia.

Every day, public transport travels hundreds of kilometers and burns hundreds of liters of fuel. But with the growth of cities, the need for public transport is increasing, the load on roads is growing, and with it the number of exhaust gases, soot, dust and soot in the air. And all this breathe drivers, passengers and pedestrians. Probably in every major city Russia feels an urgent need for a public transport system that causes minimal damage to the environment and meets the environmental needs of our time.

While in Russia the problem is just beginning to become acute, in a number of cities around the world the first steps have already been taken to change the situation for the better. For example, in New York, a program to convert urban transport to alternative energy sources has existed for more than 20 years. According to it, liquefied gas buses run through the streets of the city, and old diesel buses must be replaced with newer ones with additional filters.

A similar situation exists in the capital of Great Britain. In March 2006, hybrid buses appeared on the streets of London. All buses have been successfully tested. Encouraged by this, the city authorities announced that soon all buses without exception will run on hybrid engines. And more recently, Londoners have become participants in another experiment with public transport - 10 buses appeared in the city, which are driven by fuel cells running on compressed hydrogen. Passengers have already appreciated their quietness and smoothness. At the same time, ecological buses develop quite a serious speed - up to 80 km/h.

Beijing, China's capital, now has 1,000 hybrid buses. They use only 29.5 liters of petrol per 100 km. This amount of fuel is used to generate electricity, which is necessary to set the bus in motion. Environmentalists note a significant reduction in harmful emissions into the atmosphere and an improvement in the ecological situation in the city. Several such buses were presented by the mayor of Beijing as a gift to the Moscow government.

Things are interesting in Hamburg, Germany, where the Clean Urban Transport for Europe program is being implemented quite successfully. As part of the program, 30 hydrogen-powered buses run around the city. Hydrogen as a fuel is notable for the fact that when it is burned, water is formed. At the same time, no exhaust gases and combustion products are emitted into the atmosphere. The only difficulty is that the release of pure hydrogen is a rather complicated and time-consuming process, but the authorities of Hamburg hope to solve this problem soon.

In Russia, since 2010, ecobuses have been running quite successfully in Krasnodar. It is noteworthy that all of them are the development of the Engels trolleybus plant. These buses run on natural gas and electricity. Like everyone else vehicles powered by electricity, they are silent. Ecobuses are quite friendly to the environment - the emission of harmful substances is significantly reduced.

Experiments on the introduction of ecobuses as public transport are now being carried out in many cities of Russia, including Moscow. Therefore, taking into account global trends, we can safely assume that the public transport systems of large Russian cities may soon be revised in favor of the introduction of ecological buses.

The city authorities have found a replacement for the usual trolleybuses. Now new eco-friendly LIAZ buses (Euro-5 engine) will move around the center of the capital. Modern buses, or rather, electric buses, should start moving around the city by the end of December.

Way to electric buses!

Speaking at the radio station "Moscow speaking", the head of the Moscow Deptrans Maxim Liksutov spoke about the prospects of the capital's trolleybuses.

During the discussion, he said that the contact power grid had long been outdated, and this leads to large losses of electricity (about 30%). In addition, the ecological bus, which is planned to be put into operation instead of trolleybuses, will make it possible to purify the air above the city.

Maxim Stanislavovich noted that trolleybus routes will not go anywhere, just new modern buses will appear in their place. And this, in turn, will make life easier for motorists - after all, electric buses have a much greater degree of maneuverability compared to trolleybuses.

M. Liksutov also emphasized that the tram network has been actively developing in the city over the past few years. Old tracks are being reconstructed, stops are appearing, a new fleet with modern low-floor trams is being purchased.

Ecobuses - transport of the future

Ecological bus LIAZ with Man engine of Euro-5 standard is an excellent alternative to trolleybuses. The new generation Russian bus runs on modern fuels (diesel, electricity and gas), it has already passed a number of certification tests and is completely ready for operation.

The new electric bus meets all environmental requirements. The use of the Euro-5 standard will reduce hydrocarbon emissions into the atmosphere by 143 times! Not to mention the emissions of other substances.

Moreover, New episode buses is different comfortable salons, the latest air conditioners and heating systems, as well as other fashionable "chips".