Midland Expressway Ltd: Carbon Footprint of the M6Toll

Like most modern businesses Midland Expressway, the company responsible for building and running the M6 Toll, takes the issue of corporate social responsibility (CSR) seriously.

After several years of operation, following its launch in late 2003, the company was concerned to understand the new road’s carbon footprint. They wanted to mitigate the problem by somehow reducing the road’s impact on the environment, and approached Staffordshire University's Centre for Applied Business Research (CABR) for assistance. 

Within the university, we have a dedicated Low Carbon Consultant as well as a team with developing expertise in this, high profile CSR area.

Economics Professor, Geoff Pugh, and GIS specialist, Jon Fairburn, accepted the challenge and began by undertaking a survey to model the total projected carbon emissions arising from the road - from construction until the end of its intended 50-year life cycle.

Detailed work took into account everything from routine maintenance activities, such as grass cutting, to the power used to operate the road’s drainage pumps in the event of flooding.

As with many carbon footprint assessments, however, such directly controllable aspects formed a minority of environmental impact.  The larger share was inevitably going to be contributed by actual users of the Toll, and quantifying this involved taking into account factors such as future EU transport policy, as well as using standard DEFRA factors for conversion of vehicle use into carbon footprint.

Once the size of the forecasted 50-year carbon footprint was identified, different options for reducing it (via things that the client was able to directly influence) were extensively evaluated and presented by the University team.

These included:

• Creating green areas and landscaping - in addition to work already done
• Managing sources of electricity supply
• Offsetting

The result, was that Macquarie Bank, parent company of Midland Expressway, having evaluated the report opted for a long-term investment in an offsetting company, via a partnership with the Carbon Trust. .  .

Tom Fanning, Chief Executive of Midland Expressway, stated after completion of the work in 2007 that the University's work was “exceptional”, adding that:

“I utilised the University study in presentations given to other road operations within Europe via ASECAP, the European Toll Roads Federation. I represent the UK on these matters in Europe and the University presented their paper to the Assembly with me. It was well received by over 24 nations present.”

Subsequently, our work has found its way to Westminster, where it prompted the Highways Agency to embark on a more detailed study.

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