Decarbonising Transport Awards: Championing low carbon travel

Winners of 2026 competition revealed

The transport sector is working hard to achieve net zero via initiatives that decarbonise traffic and travel.

Across the UK local authorities, transport operators and businesses are supporting the transition to electric vehicles, introducing low carbon materials into the upkeep of the road network, and encouraging people to walk, cycle and use public transport rather than depend on private vehicles.

To recognise the work being done to reduce carbon across the transport sector by individuals, teams, partnerships and innovators Landor LINKS has created the Decarbonising Transport Awards. The entries submitted in what is the inaugural year of the competition has revealed the wide variety activities across the UK. The submissions were assessed by a panel of experts drawn from across the academic, institutional, consultancy, activist and commercial worlds.

The winners of the Decarbonising Transport Awards 2026 were revealed at a packed and lively gala lunch ceremony held the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London on 27 March. The ceremony was hosted by Robert Llewellyn, actor, comedian and writer, famous for his media and event series Everything Electric, as well as his roles in Scrapheap Challenge and the sci-fi sitcom Red Dwarf.

Glenn Lyons, chair of the Decarbonising Transport Awards judging panel, is Mott MacDonald Professor of Future Mobility, University of the West of England and a past president of the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation (CIHT).

“The judges were very impressed by the number and quality of the submissions received,” he said. “Across the entries were stories of change that are collectively affecting hundreds of thousands if not millions of people. A few hundred here, a few thousand there; it all adds up! And change can be infectious. The broad range of winners was a reminder of the multifaceted nature of the decarbonisation journey, and also reminds us how many rising stars we have within the transport sector – the future’s bright!”

Awards host Robert Llewellyn added: “Decarbonisation is a really important topic. What we’re trying to do at Everything Electric, and what the people attending the awards are trying to do, is critically important. I think this going to stand out to me as a really important awards ceremony. 

“The support of the entire audience was really noticeable. It was a very good collective event. I think the support that the whole field received from each other, and from being at this awards, will give them all a real big boost. I think it’s important for teams that aren’t here – and haven’t put their project forward – to know that it’s a really supportive, friendly environment. It’s not a hostile, Formula One competition. There is no ‘drive to survive’. Instead, these are really amazing people. It felt like a really supportive crowd of people who want the ideas that they’re talking about to be spread.”

Focus on EVs

Hackney Council drives down emissions

The London Borough of Hackney was the recipient of a pair of Decarbonising Transport Awards. It received the Best EV Project Award for its chargepoint programme.

The judges were impressed by the large scale and transferability of the project, with 1,100 of a planned 2,500 public chargepoints installed across the east London borough by the end of 2025. This gives Hackney among the densest concentration of public EV chargepoints in the UK. 

The bid highlighted innovative procurement and installation processes, including the funding model, use of surplus local low-carbon electricity, reductions in the construction carbon in creating charging infrastructure, integration with the electrification of local car clubs and accessible mapping of the EV charging network.

Gossica Anichebe, Hackney’s policy and projects manager, was named Decarbonisation Hero. The judges wanted to highlight her commitment to driving down emissions through the multi-headed parking strategy which she has led.

Decarbonisation leaders

The Decarbonising Transport Awards 2026 winners

• Leadership in Local Government: Cllr Clyde Loakes MBE, Deputy Leader, London Borough of Waltham Forest
• Decarbonisation Hero: Gossica Anichebe, Policy and Projects Manager, London Borough of Hackney
• Transport Team: Southern Renewals Enterprise 
• Young Professional Award (joint winners): Dr Fanran Meng, Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Sustainable Chemical Engineering, University of Sheffield & Dr Haopeng Wang, Lecturer in Structural Engineering  Materials (T&R), Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Liverpool
• Best EV Project Award: London Borough of Hackney 
• Highways Award: East Riding of Yorkshire Council 
• Public Transport Award: Oxfordshire Bus Enhanced Partnership 
• Local Transport Project Award: Liverpool Live Lab Programme
• Freight & Logistics Award: Cross River Partnership’s Waterloo Freight Hub 
• Active & Shared Mobility Award: Voi in Cambridge 
• Behaviour Change Award: Manchester City of Cycling
• Data & Digital Innovation: East Riding of Yorkshire Council 
• Innovation in Transport: Transport for Greater Manchester
• Leisure Travel Award: Car-Free Days by Good Journey 

The judging panel

Entries to the Decarbonising Transport Awards 2026 were assessed by a panel of experts:

• Jillian Anable, Professor of Transport and Energy, University of Leeds, Institute for Transport Studies
• David Connolly, Director of Low Carbon Mobility, SYSTRA
• Robert Davis, Head of Sustainable Travel, Trueform
• Brian Deegan, Director of Inspections, Active Travel England
• Fred Ewing, Head of Transportation and Infrastructure, Meridien Business Support
• Neil Gibson, Past President ADEPT and Chair of Live Labs 2 Commissioning Board
• Alistair Kirkbride, Director, Low Carbon Destinations
• Glenn Lyons, Mott MacDonald Professor of Future Mobility, University of the West of England and past resident of the Chartered Institution of Highways & Transportation
• Greg Marsden, Professor of Transport Governance, University of Leeds
• Becca Massey-Chase, Head of Citizen Engagement and Principal Research Fellow, IPPR
• Jessica Matthew, Director, Local and Regional Transport Strategy, Department for Transport
• Nick Ruxton-Boyle, Technical Director, Citisense
• Sameer Savani, Transport Managing Director, Connected Places Catapult
• Simon Shapcott, Net Zero Director for Transportation, AtkinsRéalis
• Sarah Sharples, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Manchester
• Anne Snelson, Certified Carbon Literacy Project Trainer, Lead With Sustainability

To find out more about the Decarbonising Transport Awards visit the official website.

www.decarbonisingtransportawards.uk