The increase of carbon footprint and the climate change scenario are central themes of the current technical and political debate. An important contribution is provided by the transport of passengers and goods. Over long national distances the problem becomes even more crucial. In a nutshell, the carbon footprint of High-Speed Rail (HSR) is on average, lower than other modes of transport, such as private cars or airplanes, for the operating phases. The reduction of carbon emissions with the use of HSR for passengers’ trips at national scale would make it possible to pursue the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) included in the 2030 Agenda, with specific reference to Goal 13: “Climate change”. It is necessary to carry out an analysis of the current scientific literature on this topic, considering the levels of environmental impacts in relation to the operative phases of the HSR, through an analysis and comparison of the values of the indicators. The purpose of the paper is to give a synthetic answer to the problem: how sustainable are the HSR systems in terms of carbon footprint?
Environmental Sustainability of Railway Corridors: Case Studies of Italian High Speed Rail / Musolino, G., Moschella, M., Russo, F., Sgro, D.. - (2026), pp. 570-584. [10.1007/978-3-032-30530-5_36]
Environmental Sustainability of Railway Corridors: Case Studies of Italian High Speed Rail
Musolino, Giuseppe
;Russo, Francesco;Sgro, Domenico
2026-01-01
Abstract
The increase of carbon footprint and the climate change scenario are central themes of the current technical and political debate. An important contribution is provided by the transport of passengers and goods. Over long national distances the problem becomes even more crucial. In a nutshell, the carbon footprint of High-Speed Rail (HSR) is on average, lower than other modes of transport, such as private cars or airplanes, for the operating phases. The reduction of carbon emissions with the use of HSR for passengers’ trips at national scale would make it possible to pursue the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) included in the 2030 Agenda, with specific reference to Goal 13: “Climate change”. It is necessary to carry out an analysis of the current scientific literature on this topic, considering the levels of environmental impacts in relation to the operative phases of the HSR, through an analysis and comparison of the values of the indicators. The purpose of the paper is to give a synthetic answer to the problem: how sustainable are the HSR systems in terms of carbon footprint?I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
