Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 January 2026
641. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Transport the position regarding the Corrective Action Modelling Project that his Department is developing to correct the trajectory of carbon emissions from the transport sector out to 2030; when will this be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1051/26]
View answer642. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Transport to clarify the meaning of the phrase "a degree of flexibility will be necessary around the prioritization and allocation of funds until such time as this work is completed and decisions have been taken on the specific decarbonisation policy pathway to be pursued" on page 13 of the NDP Sectoral Investment Plan for Transport; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1052/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 641 and 642 together.
It has been widely acknowledged that transport is a very difficult sector to decarbonise. The development of the Climate Action Plan 2023 developed policies intended to put the sector on a pathway to achieve an emissions reduction of 50% by 2030, in a manner that is compliant with the sectoral emission ceilings for carbon budget periods.
However, current indications are that the carbon budget 1 (2021-2025) target of 54 Mt CO2eq has been exceeded and any overshoot will therefore be deducted from the carbon budget 2 (2026-2030) target of 37MtCO2eq. Achieving that more demanding target will be challenging and with that in mind, my Department has been working closely with the National Transport Authority (NTA) over the past 12 months to deliver the CAP26 Corrective Action Modelling Project (CAMP), the aims of which are threefold:
1. Identify policies to correct the trajectory of carbon emissions from the transport sector out to 2030.
2. Identify whether any additional measures, above and beyond those required to keep the transport sector within its sectoral emissions ceilings, could be proposed to deliver currently unallocated savings for carbon budget period 2 (2026-2030)
3. Identify decarbonisation interventions and policy pathways that will continue to deliver sustained and accelerated emissions abatement beyond 2030 into Carbon Budget 3.
The CAP26 Corrective Actions Modelling Project is progressing well. The Department, in collaboration with the NTA, has developed scenarios using NTA models to test a range of policy pathways for their potential impact on carbon emissions in transport out to 2030 and beyond. The project also includes an assessment of the socio-economic impacts of such measures. The project will be completed over the coming months and will provide a vital evidence base for further iterations of the Climate Action Plan pathway for transport.
In relation to the text referenced by the Deputy on page 13 of the NDP Sectoral Investment Plan for Transport, the outputs of the project will include a range of modelled policy pathway options designed to accelerate the decarbonisation of the transport sector which may need to be taken into account in the roll-out the Transport Sectoral Plan.
