Official Statistics

Greenhouse gas emissions from transport in 2023

Published 24 April 2025

1. About this release

This release presents statistics on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transport. GHG data is sourced from accredited official statistics^{[footnote 1]} published by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). For more information, see the About these statistics section.

Data on GHG emissions from transport can be found on the energy and environment data tables page.

In 2020 transport was significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as people were instructed to stay at home as much as possible. Restrictions were eased in 2021, and the last restrictions removed in 2022, resulting in consecutive years of increasing GHG emissions from domestic transport after a significant fall in 2020. This impact should be considered when interpreting these statistics.

Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e)

Different GHGs have different impacts on the greenhouse gas effect. All gaseous emissions are converted to the equivalent amount of CO2 needed to create the same effect and presented in this report as CO2e.

2. Main findings

In 2023, domestic transport accounted for 29% of total domestic emissions in the United Kingdom (UK).

Domestic transport was responsible for 111.8 MtCO2e (million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent), a decrease of 1% compared to 2022 and a decrease of 10% compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Domestic transport emissions have decreased by 13% since 1990, whilst total UK domestic emissions fell by 53% over the same period.

3. Domestic greenhouse gas emissions for transport and other sectors

Chart 1: Domestic greenhouse gas emissions by sector, 1990 to 2023 (DESNZ final UK greenhouse gas emissions 2023)

LULUCF stands for Land Use, Land Use Change, and Forestry.

Chart 1 is a line chart showing that:

• in 2023, domestic transport emissions (111.8 MtCO2e) decreased by 1% compared to 2022 (113.1 MtCO2e) and remained 10% below 2019 (124.7 MtCO2e) pre-pandemic levels

• between 1990 and 2023, GHG emissions from domestic transport reduced by only 13% whilst emissions from all other sectors reduced significantly (60% decrease)

• since 2014, domestic transport has been the sector with the highest greenhouse gas emissions (accounting for 29% of all UK domestic emissions in 2023, up from 16% in 1990), due to a steady decline in emissions from electricity supply, the historically largest-emitting sector^{[footnote 2]}

Chart 2: Proportion of domestic greenhouse gas emissions by sector, 2023 (DESNZ final UK greenhouse gas emissions 2023)

Chart 2 is a doughnut chart showing that, in 2023, GHG emissions from:

• domestic transport (111.8 MtCO2e) accounted for 29%

• buildings and product uses (78.5 MtCO2e) accounted for 20%

• industry (53.1 MtCO2e) accounted for 14%

• agriculture and LULUCF (47.7 MtCO2e) accounted for 12%

• electricity supply (43.9 MtCO2e) accounted for 11%

• fuel supply (30.1 MtCO2e) accounted for 8%

• waste (19.9 MtCO2e) accounted for 5%

4. Domestic greenhouse gas emissions from road transport

Road transport is responsible for the majority of domestic transport GHG emissions.

Chart 3: Domestic greenhouse gas emissions by road transport modes and non-road transport, 2023 (ENV0201)

Chart 3 is a doughnut chart showing that in 2023:

• the majority (89%) of the 111.8 MtCO2e emissions from domestic transport came from road vehicles (99.4 MtCO2e)

• cars and taxis accounted for the largest proportion (54%) of domestic transport GHG emissions (60.2 MtCO2e)

• HGVs (18.2 MtCO2e) and light vans (18.0 MtCO2e) each contributed to 16% of domestic transport GHG emissions

5. Domestic and international greenhouse gas emissions from transport modes

Chart 4: Domestic and international greenhouse gas emissions (MtCO2e) by transport mode, 1990, 2019, and 2023 (ENV0201)

HGVs stands for Heavy Goods Vehicles.

Other non-road category includes rail and other non-road transport.

Other road category includes motorcycles and mopeds and other road transport.

The table below contains the MtCO2e of GHG emissions for each mode of transport found in chart 4.

Table 1: Domestic and international greenhouse gas emissions (MtCO2e) by transport mode, 1990, 2021, and 2023 (ENV0201)

Transport type	1990	2019	2023
Total transport (domestic and international)	152.9	168.1	151.3
Total domestic transport	129.3	124.7	111.8
Cars and taxis	72.3	69.5	60.2
HGVs	21.3	19.1	18.2
Light vans	11.3	17.9	18.0
Buses and coaches	5.3	3.0	2.2
Motorcycles and mopeds	0.7	0.4	0.5
Other road transport	0.0	0.4	0.5
Rail	2.0	1.9	1.6
Domestic aviation	1.5	1.4	1.2
Domestic shipping	8.5	6.0	5.2
Other non-road transport	6.6	5.1	4.4
International aviation	15.5	36.0	33.2
International shipping	8.1	7.3	6.3

Chart 5: Trends in total greenhouse gas emissions from domestic and international transport, 1990 to 2023 (ENV0201)

Chart 5 is an area chart showing that:

• in 1990, international transport made up 15% of total transport emissions, growing steadily to 26% by 2023

• over time there was a shift in the proportions of international and domestic transport emissions, with international transport increasing as a share of total transport emissions

• after a sharp decline during the pandemic, international transport rebounded strongly in 2022 and 2023, and emissions are now approaching pre-pandemic levels

Chart 6: Trends in total greenhouse gas emissions from domestic and international transport by transport mode, 1990 to 2023 (ENV0201)

Other domestic category includes motorcycles and mopeds, other road transport, rail, domestic aviation and other non-road transport.

Chart 6 is an area chart showing that:

• in 1990, international aviation made up 10% of total transport emissions, growing steadily to 22% by 2023

• in 1990, international shipping made up 5% of total transport emissions and it decreased to 4% by 2023

• the proportion of total transport emissions from cars and taxis decreased over time from 47% in 1990 to 40% in 2023

Chart 7: Domestic and international greenhouse gas emissions by transport mode, 2023 (ENV0201)

Oth.* category includes motorcycles and mopeds and other road transport.

Chart 7 is a treemap chart showing that:

• in 2023, the majority (74%) of the 151.3 MtCO2e GHG emissions from transport came from domestic transport (111.8 MtCO2e)

• international transport accounted for 26% of transport GHG emissions (39.5 MtCO2e)

Chart 8: Domestic and international aviation and shipping trends over time, 1990 to 2023 (ENV0201)

Chart 8 is a line chart showing that from 1990 to 2023:

• international aviation emissions increased by 114% (15.5 MtCO2e to 33.2 MtCO2e)

• international shipping emissions decreased by 23% (8.1 MtCO2e to 6.3 MtCO2e)

• domestic shipping emissions decreased by 39% (8.5 MtCO2e to 5.2 MtCO2e)

• domestic aviation emissions decreased by 22% (1.5 MtCO2e to 1.2 MtCO2e)

6. Provisional greenhouse gas emissions from transport estimates for 2024

Provisional data for the UK’s domestic GHG emissions from the transport sector for 2024 have been released by DESNZ. These provisional estimates cannot be summarised by transport mode and are subject to change. This should be considered when referencing the figures.

Provisional estimates indicate that domestic transport GHG emissions have decreased 2% (1.7 MtCO2e) compared to 2023, to 110.1 MtCO2e in 2024. This is a decrease of 12% (14.6 MtCO2e) compared to the pre-pandemic period in 2019.

In 2024, domestic transport remained the UK’s largest emitting sector, rising from 29% of total emissions in 2023 (111.8 MtCO2e) to 30% in 2024 (110.1 MtCO2e).

Emissions from international aviation fuel use from UK bunkers were estimated to be 36.1 MtCO2e in 2024, an increase of 9% from 2023. This marks a return to the pre-pandemic emissions level in 2019.

Methodology for the calculation of provisional estimates can be found on the Provisional UK greenhouse gas emissions national statistics 2024 page published by DESNZ.

7. About these statistics

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. You are welcome to contact us directly by email with any comments about how we meet these standards.

Domestic emissions

This report primarily focuses on UK domestic GHG emissions, which does not include international aviation and shipping. Emissions are estimated following the guidance set out by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), as required for the UK’s submissions to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) each year. Under this guidance, international aviation and shipping emissions are reported but not included within the UK total. This report focuses on ‘territorial’ emissions, which are those emitted within the UK’s borders. Alternative presentations, on a residency or a consumption basis, are also available (ENV0201).

Data sources

The data we present on greenhouse gases comes from the DESNZ GHG Inventory collected and modelled by the Ricardo Consortium (a third-party contractor). To calculate transport emissions, Ricardo combine data on fuel consumption with transport data to model emissions. It covers the period 1990 to 2023.

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10. Contact details

Transport energy and environment statistics

Email environment.stats@dft.gov.uk

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1. Accredited official statistics are called National Statistics in the Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007. ↩

2. Context for the reduction in electricity supply emissions is available in Final UK greenhouse gas emissions national statistics: 1990 to 2023, DESNZ. ↩