Public Transit Use Must Double to Meet Climate Targets, City Leaders Warn
As COP26 events focus on electric vehicles, a new report calls for $208 billion in annual public transit investments to decarbonize transportation.
New York’s MTA, one of the largest transportation systems in the country, still faces infrastructure issues that keep people from riding.
Photographer: Anadolu Agency/AnadoluWith the transition to zero-emission vehicles headlining a slate of transportation-related events at the COP26 conference in Glasgow on Wednesday, a chorus of city officials, labor leaders and policy experts are urging climate negotiators not to lose sight of public transit as a key tool for decarbonizing the transport sector.
“If national governments do not back mayors and invest to protect and expand public transport then they won’t be able to meet their own carbon targets,” Mark Watts, executive director of C40 Cities, a network of sustainability-focused global mayors, said in a statement.