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Decarbonizing Transport by 2035: The Triple Challenge of Meeting Mobility Demand, Reducing Emissions and Adapting to a Changing Climate

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Transportation".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2024) | Viewed by 11104

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International Finance Corporation, Washington, DC, USA
Interests: sustainability and sustainable development; energy; transport; built environment
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The United Nations has identified the years 2020–2030 as the Decade of Action, with a call to accelerate ‘sustainable solutions to all the world’s biggest challenges’. The transport of people and goods remains a sector which is 90% dependent on fossil fuels; this saw the largest growth in emissions from end-use sectors in the years of 2010 to 2019 despite the wide variety of energy sources, propulsion technologies, and modal options available.

The magnitude of this challenge was illustrated plainly during the pandemic, which saw mixed impacts on transport activity, both domestic and international, passengers and freight, and by mode. Following the dip in transport emissions during 2020, the IEA reports that transport emissions rebounded and grew in 2021 to 7.7 Gt CO2.

Decarbonizing mobility faces multiple challenges: the first is to slow, stop, and reverse the growth in the emissions of the transport sector globally in the remaining years of the decade; second, to meet our mobility needs, which are expected to more than double by 2050, concentrated in emerging markets; and third, to adapt and become resilient to the already-changing physical environment.

This Special Issue is focused on publishing real-world case studies demonstrating system-level solutions to address the challenges towards decarbonizing mobility. Topics of interest for this Special Issue include technology and/or policy interventions in vehicles, fuels, network operation, urban/land use planning, and the natural environment.

Authors should clearly identify:

  • The novelty of their approach;
  • The scale of the impact, testing for sensitivity, and accounting for uncertainty;
  • How unintended consequences and problem shifting may be accounted for and mitigated;
  • Gaps in technology or policy necessary to deliver the research outcomes;

The broader relevance of the research to other transport systems.

Dr. Justin Bishop
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sustainability
  • sustainable development
  • externalities
  • urban planning
  • natural environment
  • vehicles
  • public transport
  • freight

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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26 pages, 6979 KiB  
Article
The Issue of Bus Fleet Renewal in Terms of Increasing the Share of Clean Vehicles: A Case Study for Slovakia
by Jozef Gnap, Marek Dočkalik, Ekaterina Salamakhina and Šimon Senko
Sustainability 2024, 16(11), 4656; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16114656 - 30 May 2024
Viewed by 1676
Abstract
The renewal of the vehicle fleet with environmentally friendly buses that constitute urban public transport within an urban territory, or a proportion of the transport within the territory of cities and municipalities as part of suburban public passenger transport, can make a significant [...] Read more.
The renewal of the vehicle fleet with environmentally friendly buses that constitute urban public transport within an urban territory, or a proportion of the transport within the territory of cities and municipalities as part of suburban public passenger transport, can make a significant contribution to reducing greenhouse gas and environmental pollutant emissions from transport. As part of the research, we dealt with the research question as to whether the application of the Act on the Promotion of Clean Vehicles (EU (European Union) Directive 2019/1161) will significantly increase the share of environmentally friendly buses by 2032 in the Slovak Republic (SR). The paradox of the application of the new legislation in the Slovak Republic is that, in public transport, the renewal of the vehicle fleet has significantly reduced, and will further reduce, the negative impacts of vehicle operation, but nothing will change significantly in suburban bus transport while a substantial part of the lines start and end at bus stations in city centres and a number of lines are for short distances, which can be operated by electric buses. Thus, the percentage of environmentally friendly automobiles in the Slovak Republic in urban bus transport will increase significantly. In suburban bus transport, we propose to change the legislation of the Slovak Republic in order to partially start increasing the share of environmentally friendly vehicles. Another follow-up research question was whether gross domestic product (GDP) per capita influences the increased share of environmentally friendly buses in the European countries studied. Based on the correlation measure, there is a significant connection between GDP per capita and the proportion of eco-friendly buses in certain nations. In areas with higher GDP, or in more advanced regions, there is a larger percentage of environmentally sustainable buses. The largest share of environmentally friendly buses is in the Nordic countries of Europe, at 13.44%. Full article
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Review

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41 pages, 5441 KiB  
Review
Sustainable Decarbonization of Road Transport: Policies, Current Status, and Challenges of Electric Vehicles
by Gautam Patil, Gayatri Pode, Boucar Diouf and Ramchandra Pode
Sustainability 2024, 16(18), 8058; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16188058 - 14 Sep 2024
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 8838
Abstract
Carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the primary causes behind the current rise in global temperatures and climate change. CO2, which is present in the atmosphere in significant quantities, is contributing more to the warming effect [...] Read more.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the primary causes behind the current rise in global temperatures and climate change. CO2, which is present in the atmosphere in significant quantities, is contributing more to the warming effect than other gases that are present at smaller levels. The transportation sector is contributing significantly to the total global CO2 emissions (21.7%), with road transport accounting for 74%. Switching from gasoline-powered vehicles to electric vehicles (EVs) is the most practical way to decarbonize land transportation. We have gathered information on EVs from the USA, China, India, and a few EU members for the current review. The collected data regarding government policies, subsidies, and other rules and laws, the present status of EV technology and performance, market scenarios and future projections of EVs, EV regulations in the regions with the highest penetration rates, consumer perspectives and barriers, and the decarbonization of land transportation were analyzed. The adoption of electric vehicles has advanced significantly in some parts of the world, primarily as a result of government policies that include subsidies, other regulations, and laws that globally lower the cost of acquisition and ownership for owners of electric vehicles (EVs) relative to those of internal combustion engines (ICEs). Favorable government policies have been associated with the success of EV adoption in Norway, China, the United States of America (USA), the European Union (EU), and India. With more advantages than any other country, China is currently the world’s largest EV market. In addition, it has the highest number of EVs in use and the highest manufacturing capacity. Norway leads the world in the percentage of newly registered EVs at over 90%. China is competing with the USA for leadership in manufacturing and technology, especially in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI) and batteries. Favorable perceptions of consumers regarding EVs are vital in increasing the EV adoption rate. In order to achieve the goal of decarbonizing road transportation, we proposed that a number of factors—including government energy policies and regulatory standard development, necessary infrastructure investments and developments, AI incorporation in EVs, innovation in EV and battery technologies, and consumer perspectives in particular—play a crucial role. Full article
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