Carbon neutral construction
Protecting and enhancing the local environment, and reducing our carbon emissions, is at the heart of everything we do
The project’s greenhouse gas emissions will come from three sources:
- Construction – we’re a Pathfinder scheme that will explore carbon neutral construction
- Operations and maintenance – we’ll be zero carbon in operations from 2030, and zero carbon maintenance by 2040
- Road users – when the Lower Thames Crossing opens you won’t be able to buy a new petrol or diesel car or van, and the UK will be net zero by 2050
Carbon neutral construction
The Lower Thames Crossing is a Pathfinder project, meaning it will explore ways to be carbon neutral in construction.
National Highways has already been able to significantly reduce its planned carbon emissions during construction of the Lower Thames Crossing and is working with partners and suppliers to drive it out further.
- We’re the first major infrastructure project to use our procurement process to target carbon
- We’ll test and scale-up innovative and low carbon materials and technology
- We'll only use renewable energy sources
- We’re aiming to remove diesel from our sites and only use hydrogen and electric plant
- We’ll reduce and beneficially reuse our waste
Road user carbon emissions
When the Lower Thames Crossing opens for traffic, you won’t be able to buy a new petrol or diesel car or van and within ten years the vast majority of cars are expected to be electric plug-in vehicles.
All UK roads, including the Lower Thames Crossing, are included in the UK’s commitment to reach net zero carbon by 2050.
Operations and maintenance carbon emissions
We will be zero carbon in operations from 2030, and zero carbon maintenance by 2040.
We’re committed to using renewable electricity for operations, 100% electric vehicles for non-traffic officer vehicles by 2027 and for traffic officers vehicles by 2030.
We’ve also committed to achieve zero carbon maintenance from 2040. The replacement of pavement the road surface is a key component part of our maintenance emissions and we’re looking at innovative low carbon asphalts.
