Today is the 50th #EarthDay – a day to drive meaningful action for our planet. As one of the most environmentally efficient forms of transport, the railways have a key role to play in helping the UK reach its net-zero ambitions and tackling climate change.

Did you know, over 70% of journeys are on electrified railway? New bi-mode trains can switch between diesel and electric mode, which has helped the railway reduce CO2 emissions by over 10% between 2018/19 and 2019/20, saving 469 million litres of diesel! #EarthDay

Innovation and new tech are playing a crucial role in helping us make the railway even greener. New trains on @GTRailUK use smart brakes to generate power, returning over 50% more energy back to the network than their previous fleet. #EarthDay

One freight train can carry the same load as 76 lorries meaning that rail freight is helping to cut traffic jams as well as carbon and air pollution. #EarthDay

We've increased the availability of smart tickets, meaning we're saving over 1,100km of paper every month. That’s equal to the distance between Cardiff and Berlin. #EarthDay

We’re also helping our passengers start and end their journeys in greener ways. That’s why across our network we have over 80,000 cycle spaces at more than 500 stations, as well as over 200 electric car charging points. #EarthDay

We can all make small changes to reduce our impact on the planet. More and more stations are now offering free water refills, with those at Network Rail-owned stations saving around 400,000 plastic bottles from landfill every month. #EarthDay

But we need big changes as well. The rail industry is replacing half of all trains in the country with 8,000 new, greener carriages that will be running across Britain by the mid-2020s. #EarthDay

Our proposals to government for rail fare regulations could encourage an extra 300m people to travel by rail over 10 years, this could save 120k tonnes of CO2 a year. Read our proposals for easier fares: https://bigplanbigchanges.co.uk/easierfares  #EarthDay

Our environmental impact is always front of mind for our #RailwayFamily. Like @GreaterAnglia, who used a more carbon efficient concrete design when building a new platform at Norfolk. https://www.greateranglia.co.uk/about-us/news-desk/news-articles/innovation-between-greater-anglia-and-local-construction-company #EarthDay

The rail industry stands ready to support the Government’s plans for net-zero by 2050, as part of our big plan for big changes. Find out more about how the railway is changing and improving at https://www.bigplanbigchanges.co.uk  #EarthDay