Locomotive Emissions Monitoring
Canada’s railways are greener than ever before. Innovative operating practices and investments in new Locomotive Emissions Regulations compliant locomotives have allowed Canada’s freight railways to improve their fuel efficiency by 25.9 per cent since 2005, and inter-city passenger railways to improve their fuel efficiency by 31.3% between 2005 and 2019 (pre-pandemic). In fact, the rail industry produces just one per cent of Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, even though it transports millions of passengers and around 70 per cent of the country’s intercity freight each year.
Creating a Greener Rail Network
In 1995, the Railway Association of Canada first entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Transport Canada and Environment Canada in an effort to manage the rail industry’s locomotive emissions. As a result of that agreement, the Locomotive Emissions Monitoring (LEM) Program was created to ensure that railways were living up to their commitment to meet GHG intensity reduction targets, and working to reduce emissions of criteria air contaminants (CACs).
The latest MOU with Transport Canada covers the years 2023-2030. Building off past achievements, this MOU aligns industry and government efforts to further advance decarbonization activities. The MOU creates a framework to advance research and development of net-zero technologies, improve information sharing, support climate modelling, support modal shift to rail, and inform the development of policies that support locomotive emission reductions. Class 1 freight railways commit to reducing emissions intensity in accordance with their Science Based (SBTi) targets, and to achieve absolute emission reductions by 2030 aligned with SBTi-modeled pathways. Passenger railways, shortline and regional railways, and Transport Canada will continue to work with other federal departments, provincial and municipal governments, academia, and other key stakeholders to reduce emissions by 2030. RAC and TC will work together to explore the feasibility of achieving a 10 to 20% of low carbon fuels use within the rail sector by 2030, to send a clear signal that the rail sector will require significant volumes of sustainable low-carbon fuels. The Railway Association of Canada publishes an annual, peer-reviewed report summarizing the progress that railways have made towards meeting these targets, and highlighting the actions that the industry has taken to reduce emissions. The program is audited by an independent and accredited firm to ensure both data integrity, and that the terms and conditions of the MOU are being observed.
Previous MOUs may be viewed by clicking on the following links.
The LEM Program has led to the implementation of new locomotive and railcar technologies and retrofits, the creation of educational programs to promote best practices and innovation, as well as new operational and infrastructure initiatives—all with the goal of reducing the industry’s emissions. Many of these initiatives are highlighted in RAC’s Action Plan for Reducing GHG Emissions.
The LEM Program also supports the Government of Canada’s objective to reduce our country’s total GHG emissions by 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030. It’s just one of the ways that Canada’s railways are creating a transportation system that not only strengthens our country’s economy and competitiveness, but does so as sustainably as possible.
Check out RAC’s Rail Freight Greenhouse Gas Calculator to see the estimated amount of carbon dioxide that can be diverted from our environment by choosing freight rail instead of trucks:
( Estimate this distance )
For more information about the Locomotive Emissions Monitoring Program, please contact:
Manager, Economics, Data and Research