"The real transportation challenge isn’t EVs—it’s humans. Social and political will, not engineering, are the hardest parts.” - Prof Brian Caulfield

"If engineers had the money, we’d be building metros and light rails right now. The solutions exist—the bottleneck is delivering them.”  - Prof Brian Caulfield

"Sustainability isn’t just about the infrastructure; it’s about minimising disruption for people and reusing space for public life.” -  Robert Sizer

"Give more space back to people, and you change how cities work and how we live in them." - Prof Brian Caulfield

"We need sustainability to be a contract KPI, not just a talking point. That’s how you get real change." - Robert Sizer

KEYWORDS

#SustainableTransport #EngineeringIreland #NetZero #ClimateAction #UrbanMobility #RailInfrastructure #Tunnels #PublicTransport #ElectricBuses #PoliticalWill #FutureOfTransport #SmartCities #GreenEngineering #MultimodalTransport #Ireland2030

TRANSCRIPTION

For your convenience, we include an automated AI transcription

Dusty Rhodes [00:00]:
 The real transportation challenge isn't EVs, it's humans. Hi there, my name is Dusty Rhodes and you're welcome to Amplified, the Engineers Journal podcast and the second episode in our special mini-series on sustainability. As engineers and a nation, we are racing against a 2030 deadline to transform transport systems across multiple engineering disciplines. The goal: seamless multimodal transport networks powered by clean energy to create a positive environmental impact. But how do we do this, and how do you make sustainability a fundamental design principle?
 Joining us to share their experience and some insights on this are Brian Caulfield, Professor in Transportation at Trinity College Dublin and a leading expert in transportation research, particularly on its environmental impact. We also have Robert Sizer, Director of Engineering for UK at IESA, who excels at overseeing large complex design projects, including those for major rail infrastructure like stations and tunnels.

Dusty Rhodes [01:25]:
 Rob and Brian, you're both very welcome to the podcast. Thank you for joining us.

Brian Caulfield [01:28]:
 Thank you for having us.

Robert Sizer [01:30]:
 Yeah, big thanks, Dusty.

Dusty Rhodes [01:32]:
 Let me set the scene first. In the first episode, we covered SDGs and the current state of sustainability in Ireland. Today, we're focusing on the transport sector, one which encompasses so many other disciplines, including civil, technology, chemical and all that. Brian, from an engineering perspective, can I start by asking you: what do you think are the most challenging aspects of meeting transport emission targets by the dreaded 2030?

Brian Caulfield [01:57]:
 I think that the challenges aren't engineering, to be honest. I think the challenges are political. From an engineering perspective, and Rob will be able to talk a lot about this, the delivery of big transport infrastructure is something that's been happening all across the world for decades. We in Ireland, and maybe more specifically in Dublin, haven't been delivering that type of infrastructure for decades. I think the political will to deliver them is going to be the big issue.  Also, I think socially it's a big problem too. To reach those targets of a 50% reduction in emissions by the end of the decade, it requires everybody to change how they move and change fundamentally how we operate as an economy. I think then it leads to: is that target actually feasible or is it even realistic? There are lots of challenges.
 I don't see that there are very many engineering ones. If the engineers were able to do it and had all the money in the world, we'd be building metros and light rails right now. There you go.

Dusty Rhodes [03:06]:
 We'd have it done by 2028, that's what you're telling us! All right.

Dusty Rhodes [03:10]:
 You mentioned social acceptance and stuff like that. I feel that a big driver in this area is public transport because it's highly visible. People get to experience the changes.

Brian Caulfield [03:20]:
 Absolutely. If you look at how you move people in a city, public transport is the only way you can move people in big numbers. Private vehicles, EVs or otherwise, are never going to do it.
 If you look at Paris or Barcelona or cities in the UK, they've been moving people by train, by light rail, by bus, and they're all interconnected. We haven't done that.
 It's not an engineering problem, it's a policy, planning and funding issue. And for the public, acceptance follows when people see real change working. For instance, if you put in a new bus lane or light rail and it moves people faster, people accept it.

Dusty Rhodes [04:10]:
 Rob, you’ve overseen projects in places like Madrid, London, Barcelona. From your perspective, what’s the first sustainability consideration you get on the design table when you’re starting a major transport infrastructure project?

Robert Sizer [04:22]:
 I really enjoyed listening to what Brian was saying. The key thing, for a first point, is minimising the disruption for people and users. That’s an absolute key point. But the other is about intermodal—reusing and connecting the spaces we have.
 The regeneration of cities is key here. Dublin, for example, you’ve got the Luas line, people on bikes, cars, buses. The question is how do you link those together?
 In cities like Barcelona, they’ve taken car lanes away, given space to people. Suddenly, you see life come back into the city centre.

Dusty Rhodes [05:10]:
 Brian, what’s the data say? When these changes happen—like reallocating road space—does it work? Is there kickback?

Brian Caulfield [05:18]:
 A big thing about transport and proving it works is collecting data. If it’s not counted, it doesn’t count. You can say: yes, there are however many cyclists using a cycle lane, or yes, the buses have gotten X amount faster. The research and data collection behind proving that it works is vital.
 Then you build upon that. So the second phase of say, the Dublin transport plan happened around the back of Trinity. There was very little kickback on that. Now they’re onto the next stage. Once you have evidence to prove it works, you can bring politicians and people with you.

Dusty Rhodes [06:00]:
 Rob, what are the main public concerns you encounter when you start a major project?

Robert Sizer [06:07]:
 People worry about change, especially if it disrupts their routine. But when you keep people informed, minimise the impact, and quickly show benefits—like faster commutes or better spaces—they often come around.
 A big part of what we do now is digital modelling and communication: showing how the space will look, what the benefits are, and how it’ll all work when done.

Dusty Rhodes [06:39]:
 Brian, what about the skills pipeline? We keep hearing Ireland will need thousands more engineers and upskilling for these major projects.

Brian Caulfield [06:48]:
 I’d add two things. Sustainability is about building a workforce, not importing a workforce. We want to bring in graduates, trainees, people, and build them up. These projects are not for two years—they can be someone’s whole career. Metrolink, Dart Plus, Luas extensions... Ireland needs engineers.
 We need KPIs around training, development, upskilling. Digital adoption is really key—planning, mapping, using BIM and 4D, 5D digital models to track progress and find efficiencies. It’s about capacity to deliver.

Robert Sizer [07:38]:
 Absolutely. Metro is going to require about 8,000 people working at full tilt. We need to think about where they’ll live, how we’ll upskill. In Trinity, we’re launching Ireland’s first MSc in climate adaptation. The workforce is keen and excited. But how we adapt our infrastructure for climate impacts is vital .

Dusty Rhodes [08:11]:
 There have been changes in the planning sector—new authority, new act. Will this help deliver sustainable transport faster?

Brian Caulfield [08:17]:
 It can’t hurt! Right now, there’s a huge number of projects with An Bord Pleanála. The bus corridors for BusConnects have left An Bord Pleanála and some will start construction soon.
 But the big ticket projects—Metro, Light Rail—are still with An Bord Pleanála. Planning is the bottleneck. We have a capacity issue, not enough people. We might need a model to fast-track critical infrastructure, just like in energy or water sectors.

Robert Sizer [09:01]:
 Projects like Metro or light rail are nation-scale efforts. In the past, when Ardnacrusha was built, it was a national effort. Now, we need the same—shoulder to the wheel, brave politicians to push green buttons.

Dusty Rhodes [09:28]:
 Brian, people often say, why not just use buses for everything? Can a bus network do what a metro does?

Brian Caulfield [09:34]:
 Not really. Metro, when built, will move 50–55 million people per year. For a bus network to do that, you’d clog up cities with buses. It’s a capacity issue. That’s the bus versus rail argument.

Dusty Rhodes [09:50]:
 Rob, in Europe, you see lots of cities giving free or cheap access to public transport. How important are incentives?

Robert Sizer [09:55]:
 Huge! In Montpellier, residents get free tram access. It’s a massive incentive. The more you make it easy and affordable, the more people use it. The idea is to give more space back to people and make cities work for everyone.

Dusty Rhodes [10:23]:
 Are there innovations in light rail/tunnelling to minimise disruption and carbon?

Robert Sizer [10:26]:
 Yes. In Spain and the UK, we’re trialing light rail that only removes a small layer of ground, not disturbing utilities below. Minimising construction impact, both for users and carbon.

Brian Caulfield [10:38]:
 And on the digital side, using data and modelling to find where the biggest carbon savings are—material choice, logistics, design.

Dusty Rhodes [10:48]:
 How do you future-proof all these investments?

Robert Sizer [10:51]:
 Contract KPIs. Make sustainability a KPI, not just a talking point. And upskilling - engineers need to learn new digital tools, material science, climate adaptation. That’s how we get results.

Dusty Rhodes [11:08]:
 Final thoughts—what’s the biggest thing Ireland could do to move faster?

Brian Caulfield [11:11]:
 Be bold. Invest at scale. Political leadership. The solutions exist, we just need to deliver.

Robert Sizer [11:18]:
 Upskill. Plan digitally. And give space back to people—cities are for people, not cars.

Dusty Rhodes [11:25]:
 Thanks both for sharing your expertise and insights. If you want to learn more about sustainable transport and Ireland’s climate action, check out the show notes for links and further reading.