Bridging the gap between policy rhetoric and action : role of the state, public sector organizations and individuals in sustainable transport in Australia

Australians are driving more cars, more often. Over the last 30 years the total number of Australian cars has grown three times faster than population (NSW Greenhouse Office, 2007). In the last decade, in Sydney the number of kilometers traveled per vehicle has risen more than twice as fast as the population with private cars producing 47%, and commercial vehicles 25%, of all NSW transport emissions in 2002 (NSW Greenhouse Office, 2007). Burning of fossil fuels is the most significant source of carbon dioxide emissions world wide and carbon dioxide is identified as the chief contributor to global warming (Reese, 2007). There are four main sources of greenhouse gas emissions these include burning of fossil fuels for electricity, industrial and commercial use of fossil fuels for heat, emissions from agriculture and miscellaneous activities, and the burning of fossil fuels for transportation (Reese, 2007).