Mobility transition [1] [2] is a set of social, technological and political processes of converting traffic (including freight transport) and mobility to sustainable transport with renewable energy resources, and an integration of several different modes of private transport and local public transport. It also includes social change, a redistribution of public spaces, [3] and different ways of financing and spending money in urban planning. The main motivation for mobility transition is the reduction of the harm and damage that traffic causes to people (mostly but not solely due to collisions) and the environment (which also often directly or indirectly affects people) in order to make (urban) society more livable, as well as solving various interconnected logistical, social, economic and energy issues and inefficiencies.
An important goal is the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions such as CO2. To achieve the goal set in the Paris Agreement, that is, to restrict global warming to clearly below 2 °C, the burning of fossil fuels is to be discontinued around 2040. [4] Because the CO2 emissions of traffic practically need to be reduced to zero, [5] the measures taken so far in the transport sector are not sufficient in order to achieve the climate change mitigation goals that have been set. [6]
A mobility transition also serves health purposes in the metropolitan regions and large cities and is intended in particular to counteract the massive air pollution. [7] For example, in Germany in 2015, traffic caused about 38% of human-related nitrogen oxide emissions. [8] According to Lelieveld et al. (2015), air pollution from land traffic alone killed around 164,000 people in 2010; in Germany alone, it was over 6,900 people. [9] A 2017 study by the same lead author concluded that air pollution from road traffic in Germany causes 11,000 deaths every year that could potentially be avoided. This figure is 3.5 times the number of fatalities from accidents. [10]
To demonstrate how much road traffic contributes to air pollution in Germany, for every 100 inhabitants, 58 of them owned passenger cars, according to Federal Statistical Office of Germany. [11]
Further motives for the mobility transition are the desire for less noise, streets with quality of life and lower accident risks (see also Vision Zero). According to estimates by the European Environment Agency, 113 million people in Europe are affected by road noise at unhealthy levels. [12] With increasing traffic and commuter numbers, many citizens also wished for more attractive places to spend time in public spaces. [13] A mobility transition therefore also serves to increase the quality of life. [14]
The mobility transition is also seen by some as a means of reducing aggressive behaviour in traffic (road rage) and in society. [15] Studies indicate that people in large and expensive cars are more likely to behave more recklessly. [16] According to the German Verkehrsklima 2020 (Traffic Mood 2020) study, women feel more insecure in traffic than men, and they want more controls and stricter laws. [17] On the other hand, the "evil eye" design of vehicles is increasingly used by manufacturers to sell vehicles to drivers who want to feel strong and superior on the road. [18] Accident reporting by the press and the police sometimes paints a distorted picture. [19]
Another driving factor of the mobility transition is the increasing standstill in traffic congestion in streets and on roads. Traditional traffic policy usually relies on expanding the roads to solve the congestion problem. [20] From a global perspective, there are two important factors behind the increasing traffic jams: more and more people are moving to the cities in the course of urbanisation and more automobiles (also known as status symbol) are being bought as prosperity increases. It can be assumed that the expansion of public and non-motorised transport will play a greater role again in the future. [21]
Another reason for an energy transition in mobility is the fact that peak oil production is approaching fast, or may already have been passed (as of 2021; it is difficult to estimate peak oil). [22] The Earth's oil reserves are finite, and oil extraction will become increasingly and eventually prohibitively expensive to the point where fewer and fewer petroleum-fuelled vehicles can be powered anymore. Sooner or later in the 21st century, mobility will have no choice but to switch to sufficiently sustainable and affordable fuels for propulsion. [22]
There has been criticism of automotive cities and car dependency since at least the 1960s. In the Netherlands, Provo Luud Schimmelpennink's 1965 White Bicycle Plan was an early attempt to stop the rising death toll due to car-related traffic accidents, and to stimulate cycling as a safer and healthier alternative for short-distance travel in the city of Amsterdam. [23] Although the plan itself was a complete failure, it drew widespread publicity and influenced urban planning ideas around the world – with the white bicycle becoming 'an almost mythical worldwide symbol for a better world'. [23] It inspired the emergence of both strongly anti-car movements such as Kabouter (Gnome), Amsterdam Autovrij ("Amsterdam Car-Free") and De Lastige Amsterdammer ("The Troubled/Troublesome Amsterdammer"), as well as pro-cycling movements in Amsterdam and elsewhere in the Netherlands in the early 1970s. [23] A prominent example was protest group Stop de Kindermoord ("Stop the Child Murder"), founded in 1972 (formalised in 1973) by a journalist from Eindhoven whose young daughter was killed in a traffic accident, and shortly thereafter another daughter of his was almost killed as well. [23] The movement highlighted how lethally dangerous traffic had become for children in particular, and that the authorities had failed to acknowledge and address the problem. [23] It mobilised parents, teachers, journalists, other citizens and politicians; even right-wing politicians, who had traditionally promoted automobile interests, were influenced by the campaign and became more willing to adopt preventive measures. [23] In Autokind vs Mankind (1971) and On the Nature of Cities (1979), American author Kenneth R. Schneider vehemently criticised the excesses of automobile dependence and called for a struggle to halt and partially reverse negative developments in transportation, although he was largely ignored at the time. [24]
An early theorist on mobility transitions was American cultural geographer Wilbur Zelinsky, whose 1971 paper "The Hypothesis of the Mobility Transition" formed the basis of what has become known as the Zelinsky Model. [25] [26] In 1975, Austrian civil engineer and transportation planner Hermann Knoflacher sought to promote cycling traffic in Vienna. He caricatured the enormous spatial demands of automobiles with his self-invented Gehzeug ("walking gear/vehicle"). [27] [28]
The German dictionary Duden defines 'mobility transition' (German: Verkehrswende) as "fundamental conversion of public transport [especially with ecological objectives]" (German: „grundlegende Umstellung des öffentlichen Verkehrs [besonders mit ökologischen Zielvorstellungen]“). [29] Adey et al. (2021) defined 'mobility transition' as 'the necessary and inevitable transformation from a world in which mobility is dominated by the use of fossil fuels, the production of greenhouse gases and the dominance of automobility to one in which mobility entails reduced or eliminated fossil fuels and GHG emissions and is less dependent on the automobile.' [1]
According to a 2016 thesis paper by Agora Verkehrswende – a joint initiative of Stiftung Mercator [30] and the European Climate Foundation – the goal of a traffic transition (Verkehrswende) in Germany is ensuring climate neutrality in transport by 2050. [20] It must be based on two pillars:
A mobility transition also includes a cultural change, in particular a re-evaluation of "the street". Currently, the primary purpose of streets is to direct traffic through the city with as little disruption as possible. In the future, the dominance of the car should give way to equal rights for all modes of transport. [32]
In an expanded definition, the mobility transition is distinguished from a pure propulsion transition on the one hand to a fundamental mobility transition on the other: [33]
In some cases, a mobility transition is also presented as a paradigm shift of the 'understanding of ownership'. Collective use of means of transport makes it possible to use modes of transportation 'adapted to specific needs', such as carsharing, peer-to-peer carsharing, bicycle-sharing systems. It also enables connecting different modes of transportation to one another on a route to be travelled. Electromobiles could better exploit their advantages in networking with other means of transport. Electric vehicles adapted to the respective uses can be small or large depending on the application, and do not (always) have to be designed for long distances. A suitable charging infrastructure is required. Under certain circumstances, in such an environment it will no longer be necessary to own private transport for one's own use. [36]
In Germany, the mobility transition can be contrasted to the Bundesverkehrswegeplan 2030 ('Federal Transport Routes Plan 2030'). The mobility transition is based on avoiding traffic and shifting to rail, but the Bundesverkehrswegeplan is based on the construction and expansion of trunk roads in Germany (including but not limited to the Autobahn ). [37] [38] Transport scientist Heiner Monheim regards the transition as a "turning away from car subsidies through billions [of euros] in road network expansion". He sees a decisive change in the priorities of transport policy as a necessary condition to achieve this. [39]
The Umweltbundesamt announced that in 2018, the sum of all environmentally harmful subsidies in Germany was 65.4 billion euros, almost half of them in the areas of traffic and transport. In traffic, such subsidies with harmful effects even increased from 2012 to 2018. [40]
The COVID-19 pandemic made it clear that work and transport can be organised differently, even in a comparatively short time. An increased focus on working from home could save millions of tonnes of greenhouse gases. [42] [43] [44]
Various measures have been proposed by different people and groups to achieve a mobility transition.
In a 2017 position paper, German think tank Agora Verkehrswende described how a climate-neutral conversion of transport would be possible by 2050 without sacrificing mobility. In addition to technological innovations, there are new traffic concepts, regulatory measures and cultural change. Multi-link transport chains (Intermodal passenger transport) are considered. [45] [31] Amongst other things, there were also studies on this in November 2019 by the Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD, "Traffic Club Germany") and the Heinrich Böll Foundation. [46]
Various measures have been proposed to achieve the mobility transition – in particular a significant reduction in energy requirements and a change in traffic behaviour:
Major changes can succeed with the help of traffic avoidance, and a shift towards sustainable transport in the form of pedestrian traffic, cycling, rail transport and local public transport. [47] [48] According to a 2010 report, each person in Germany in 2008 conducted an average of 3.4 trips a day, with an average length of 11.5 kilometres. On average, private cars were parked for around 22,5 hours a day, because they were used for only 1 hour and 19 to 28 minutes a day. [20] [49] : 1, 28 Electric cars with a short range, bicycles, electric bicycles (e-bikes), pedelecs, cargo bikes, but also recently e-scooters, are usually well suited for a majority of these routes. The joint use of automobiles in carsharing could increase the utilisation of the vehicles and lead to fewer cars being needed overall. This could also reduce the land consumption of parking spaces and free up space for other uses. [20] In 2002 and 2008, vehicles in Germany were occupied by an average of 1.5 people. [49] : 87 One method of efficient use of passenger cars is the formation of carpools and the operation of ridesharing companies. Needs-based use of various sorts of low emission vehicles can also serve to reduce fuel consumption. The latter measures would lead to an increase in energy and vehicle efficiency. [48] Another component in the future mobility mix could be Neighborhood Electric Vehicles.
Numerous regulatory control measures are possible, for example congestion charges, aviation taxation and subsidies (such as a jet fuel tax and a departure tax), a reform of company car taxation, parking space management (for example through pay and display), or an extension of emissions trading to road traffic. [48] The introduction of speed limits, or lowering existing speed limits, would also have an impact on greenhouse gas emissions such as CO2 (carbon dioxide) and NOx (nitric oxide and nitrogen dioxide). Passenger cars consume a disproportionately large amount of fuel at high speeds. A speed limit can also have secondary emissions-reducing effects, about which there is still considerable uncertainty: lower maximum speeds and longer travel times can contribute to a shift in traffic to rail and to the promotion of vehicles with lower engine power. [31] [50] [51] The externalities of traffic, namely the impact that air pollution caused by motor vehicles has on society and the environment, must also be taken into account here. [52]
The 2019 Dutch nitrogen emissions crisis , which indirectly caused the Dutch farmers' protests, convinced the government in November 2019 to lower the speed limits in the Netherlands on national roads to 100 kilometres per hour during the day, from 6 am to 7 pm. In the evening and at night the old speeds were maintained. [53] [54] Meanwhile, the State of the Netherlands v. Urgenda Foundation court case was decided in favour of its plaintiff Urgenda (initially in June 2015, upheld on appeal in October 2018, and finally confirmed by the Supreme Court of the Netherlands on 20 December 2019), who successfully forced the government to implement the necessary measures to reduce the Netherlands' CO2 emissions from 1990 levels by 25% by 2020. Although the government was free to choose which measures it would take to achieve this reduction, the plaintiff and other environmentalists had been suggesting throughout the legal process to lower the speed limit as one of several effective options to do so. [55] [56] Similar environmental arguments for speed limits have been proposed in Germany. [57] [58] [59]
As one of several methods to mitigate the environmental impact of aviation, a shift to other modes of transport or a switch from short-haul air traffic to high-speed trains has been proposed. [4] In several countries in Europe, increasingly in the 2010s and early 2020s, some governments have even imposed a short-haul flight ban on all airlines, while many governmental agencies, commercial companies, universities, and NGOs have imposed restrictions or prohibitions on their employees to not take short-haul flights that can also be properly accomplished by train. [60] [61]
In the field of urban planning, there are concepts for walkability, the compact city (or 'city of short distances'), New Urbanism (or its variant New Pedestrianism), and car-free living. In research policy, there are demands to give more consideration to the consequences of motorised private transport in the form of practice- and solution-oriented research. [62]
According to a 2015 study by the Verkehrsclub Deutschland, local public transport in Germany was not customer-friendly enough. Cryptic route networks, opaque fare systems, ticket machines that cannot be operated, draft bus stops, and a lack of announcements about transfer and connection options were criticised. The club also called for better linking of local public transport with other modes of transportation. This included bike racks at bus stops, information on taking bikes on buses and trains, and options for switching to carsharing providers. Furthermore, the synchronisation of timetables was criticised, because it led to unnecessarily long waiting times for connecting buses or trains. [63] In 2012, several local public transport companies reportedly had been making efforts to improve the usability of ticket machines in Bavaria and Saxony. [64] [65] Against this background, Federal Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt in 2017 called for electronic tickets and a uniform tariff system for all transport associations to be established by 2019. [66]
Since the 2010s, there have been frequent discussions on whether local public transport should be free of charge. The best-known example of free public transport is the Estonian capital Tallinn, where buses and trains have been free since 2013. By 2021, most counties in Estonia had also introduced free buses and trains. [67] Public transport is also free throughout Luxembourg. In Germany, the cities of Monheim am Rhein and Langenfeld, Rhineland were testing free public transport as of September 2021. [68]
Some cities have introduced mini electric buses, primarily in inner-city areas. The historic city centre of Aix-en-Provence, France is very narrow and closed to cars, taxis and normal bus traffic. In order to get people with restricted mobility to their destination, wheelchair-accessible electric minibuses are frequented there without a fixed timetable. [69] Likewise, in the medieval old town of Regensburg, only mini-ebuses are still driving around. [70] Furthermore, two self-propelled e-shuttles are in use in Regensburg's industrial park. [71] Berlin and Göppingen also want to supplement their local public transport with electric, highly automated minibuses. [72] [73]
In some cities, cableways are built as part of local public transit. Such cableways can be found in places such as Medellín (see Metrocable (Medellín)), La Paz (see Mi Teleférico), New York (see Roosevelt Island Tramway), Portland (see Portland Aerial Tram), Algiers (see Cableways of Algiers ), Lisbon (see Funiculars in Lisbon ), Brest (see Cableways of Brest ), Bozen, [74] London (see Emirates Air Line (cable car)) and Ankara. [75] Cable cars are electrically operated and they have very low CO2 emissions compared to other modes of transport. At 50% capacity, a cable car causes 27 grams of CO2 per person and kilometre, a train with an electric locomotive 30 grams, a bus with a diesel engine 38.5 grams, and a car with a combustion engine even 248 grams. Furthermore, cable cars cause practically no noise pollution on the route, since the individual gondolas do not have their own drive, but are moved by a central motor housed in the station. In Germany, on the occasion of the Bundesgartenschau ('Federal Horticultural Show'), cable cars have emerged in Berlin (see IGA Cable Car), Koblenz (see Koblenz cable car) and Cologne (see Cologne Cable Car). Compared to underground or suburban trains, cable cars are relatively cheap and can be built quickly. As of November 2021, there are projects to build more cable cars to supplement local public transit in Berlin, Bonn, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Munich, Stuttgart and Wuppertal. [76]
Continuous development is also affecting the rural areas as well. As a solution, what came into play was the integrated systems of public transport that is playing an important role in the development of rural areas, especially in post-communist countries. [77]
In order to achieve the energy transition in transport, it is considered necessary to refrain from burning petroleum-based fuel and to use more climate-friendly propulsion technologies or fuels. [48] Electricity from renewable sources, or e-fuels or biofuels produced from green electricity, can serve as substitutes for petrol and diesel fuel. [4]
Since the overall efficiency of e-fuels is far lower than direct electrification via electric cars, the German Advisory Council on the Environment has recommended restricting the use of electricity-based synthetic fuels to air and shipping traffic in particular, in order not to increase electricity consumption too much. For example, hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) require more than twice as much energy per kilometre as battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and vehicles with combustion engines powered by power-to-liquid fuels even need between four and six times as much. [78] Battery vehicles therefore have significantly better energy efficiency than vehicles that are operated with e-fuels. [79] In general, electric cars consume around 12 to 15 kWh of electrical energy per 100 km, while conventionally powered cars use the equivalent of around 50 kWh per 100 km. [80] At the same time, the energy required for the production, transport and distribution of fuels such as petrol or diesel is also eliminated. [81] In China in particular, the switch from internal combustion engines to electromobility is being promoted for health reasons (to avoid smog) in order to counteract the massive air pollution in the cities. [7]
According to Canzler & Wittowsky (2016), the propulsion transition could also become the central building block of Germany's Energiewende, [6] While the switch to renewable energies is already underway worldwide, the energy transition in transport is proving more difficult, especially with the switch from oil to sustainable energy sources. However, disruptive technologies (such as the development of more powerful and cheaper batteries or innovations in the field of autonomous driving) and new business models (especially in the field of digitalisation) can also lead to unpredictable, rapid and far-reaching changes in mobility. [45] [82]
New methods of getting around in urban traffic have also emerged:
Vienna, the capital of Austria, has been consistently developing into a city that is restructuring public space and promoting local public transport. Viennese urban planner Hermann Knoflacher has stated: 'The money comes on foot or by bike.' The economic use of space as parking spaces is inefficient. A car-free street increases the turnover of restaurants, clothing stores and retailers. This would create new jobs. [41]
The attractiveness of public transport can be stimulated by lowering the price of an annual pass: in Vienna one can use public transport with a subscription fee of 1 euro a day. [83] [84] Between 2012 and 2018 the number of annual ticket holders increased from 373,000 to 780,000. At the same time as the changeover, the city began to invest more heavily in local transport. In July 2018, some German cities announced that they would follow the Viennese model and lower the prices for annual tickets. [85]
Since 1 March 2020, local public transport across Luxembourg has been free of charge for everyone. The Grand Duchy thus became the first country in the world to introduce free local public transit. [86] An exception to this is first class travel on the railways. [87] A major reason for the overhaul was the increasingly problematic traffic jams on Luxembourg's roads. [88]
Several more significant examples of (potential) components and initiatives for mobility transition that have been proposed, studied, or put into practice include:
A short-haul flight ban is a prohibition imposed by governments on airlines to establish and maintain a flight connection over a certain distance, or by organisations or companies on their employees for business travel using existing flight connections over a certain distance, in order to mitigate the environmental impact of aviation (most notably to reduce anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions which is the leading cause of climate change). In the 21st century, several governments, organisations and companies have imposed restrictions and even prohibitions on short-haul flights, stimulating or pressuring travellers to opt for more environmentally friendly means of transportation, especially trains. [106]
A portion of air travelers in short-haul routes connect to other flights at their destination. A blanket ban would have a significant impact on these travelers, [107] as inadequate rail connectivity between airports and main railway hubs of cities generally result in longer overall travel times and disruption to travellers overall. [108]By July 2019, most political parties in Germany, including the Left Party, the Social Democrats, the Green Party and the Christian Democrats, started to agree to move all governmental institutions remaining in Bonn (the former capital of West Germany) to Berlin (the official capital since German Reunification in 1990), because ministers and civil servants were flying between the two cities about 230,000 times a year, which was considered too impractical, expensive and environmentally damaging. The distance of 500 kilometres between Bonn and Berlin could only be travelled by train in 5.5 hours, so either the train connections required upgrading, or Bonn had to be abolished as the secondary capital. [109] [110]
By far the largest part of the world's freight traffic is sea freight. In 2010, about 60,000 trillion kilometre-tonnes were transported by sea, which was 85% of the world's total freight traffic. According to a 2015 forecast by Statista, by 2050 the volume of freight will have increased to four times the levels of 2010, while the share of sea freight will remain about the same. [111]
Transporting goods by container ship is very efficient. Relatively few carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions are caused per transported tonne and kilometre compared to transport by truck (lorry). According to the Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU), the latter emit 50 grams of carbon dioxide per tonne and kilometre, while container ships only emit 15 grams. [112] However, the mineral oil-based ship fuel used by container ships is particularly polluting; 90 per cent of all large ships run on heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel). Among other things, this means that emissions of toxic sulfur oxide are many times higher. [113] To counteract this problem, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) lowered the limit value for sulfur in fuel from 3.5% to 0.5% in 2020. [114]
Efficiency can be further increased and fuel consumption reduced by building the ships even larger. [113]
There are innovations to harness wind power for sea transportation. These include cylindrical sails that can be retrofitted to cargo ships (making them "rotor ships" or "Flettner ships") and can reduce fuel consumption. Another option is a towing kite construction, which was originally developed in 2001 by the Hamburg-based company SkySails and is now being sold by AirSeas. The sail has an area of 1,000 square metres and was developed to reduce fuel consumption on cargo ships by up to 20%. As of 2019, the aviation group Airbus was testing this idea on four of its own freighters with the aim of saving up to 8,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions. [113]
As inland navigation (also known as 'inland waterway transport' (IWT) or 'inland shipping') is a relatively environmentally friendly option for freight transport (similar to rail freight transport), researchers and policy makers have been aiming to shift the volume of cargo transported by more pollutive means towards inland navigation (for example, as part of the 2019 European Green Deal). [115] According to the Research Information System for Mobility and Traffic (FIS; an agency of the German Transport Ministry), deficits in the competitiveness of German inland navigation, especially in an international comparison, are responsible for the stagnating transport volume of German inland navigation. A water infrastructure that is not optimally developed with insufficient water channel depths and bridge clearance heights lead to low loading capacities and thus to high costs. A certain exception are the waterways of the Rhine area, which also have by far the highest transport volume. [116] Furthermore, the German inland waterway fleet is quite old by international comparison (45 years in 2013). [117]
Inland navigation is closely related to seaport hinterland traffic. For example, in the modal split in hinterland traffic at the Dutch and Belgian seaports (Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Antwerp and Zeebrugge), inland shipping has a share of around 55%, while in Germany it usually remains below 10% of hinterland traffic. The reason for this is the better expansion of the Rhine waterways. Furthermore, the majority of the 250 important inland ports in Germany are owned by large companies that only handle transport goods from third-party companies to a small extent. [116] [118] Against this background, the FIS has called for the expansion and maintenance of German waterways. The number and carrying capacity of the German inland waterway vessels has remained constant in the early 21st century and was around 2.61 million tonnes in 2015. [117]
Various approaches to energy efficiency and air pollution reduction are being tested and researched in inland shipping. This includes propulsion configurations such as the father–son concept, [119] diesel-electric hybrid drives, [120] hydrodynamic optimisations, [121] fuel water emulsion injection, [122] SCR-catalysts, diesel particulate filters, [123] gas-to-liquid fuels (GTL) [124] or Liquified Natural Gas (LNG), [125] some of which can also be used in combination and are suitable for retrofitting existing systems. [126] With an engine funding program, the German Transport Ministry supports inland navigation companies in the installation and retrofitting of low-emission engines or other emission-reducing technologies. The funding rate is up to 70%. [127]
In road freight transport, some transport companies are proposing partly new technologies such as trolleytrucks, electric trucks or electric cargo bikes. Package delivery services are experimenting with new concepts of smart logistics. [130] Trolleytrucks with an auxiliary battery offer the possibility of lower-emission long-distance truck transport that is also more energy-efficient than battery-powered trucks. [131] Equipping motorways with overhead lines for heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) has the advantage that HGVs would only have to carry small batteries, as only comparatively short distances would be covered in battery-only mode. At the same time, trolleytrucks would be a cost-effective way to make freight transport climate-friendly, as the electrification of motorways, at a cost of 3 million euros/km, does not represent too much of a financial outlay. [132]
Another option to reduce CO2 emissions and environmental problems is to shift truck traffic to freight rail and inland waterway transport. This process is also known as modal shift. The German Environment Agency gives the climate impact of transport by truck in the reference year 2020 as 126 grams of CO2 equivalents per tonne-kilometre on average (g/tkm). According to the Environment Agency, transport by freight train has a climate impact of 33 g/tkm and transport by inland waterway vessel has a climate impact of 43 g/tkm, making rail and ship significantly more climate-friendly. [133]
Although the European Union and its member states strongly promote the use of inland waterways and rail in combination with truck transport, in some cases financially, [134] only HGVs have been developing positively in the 2010s, while shipping and rail have been stagnating or recording declines. [135] For 2016, the Federal Statistical Office of Germany reported a decline in transport performance of 3.7% for inland waterways, a decline of 0.5% for rail and growth of 2.8% for trucks. [136] In 2015, with a growing transport volume of 1.1%, there was a plus of 1.9% for road, a minus of 1% for rail and a minus of 3.2% for inland waterways. [137] Overall, 71% of the transport performance is accounted for by the truck. [135]
With growing containerization however, a combination of different modes of transport (intermodal freight transport) becomes more efficient. In so-called multimodal transport or combined transport, the truck only has to cover the last mile between the port or rail terminal and the customer. Measures to promote combined transport are, for example:
Sustainable transport refers to ways of transportation that are sustainable in terms of their social and environmental impacts. Components for evaluating sustainability include the particular vehicles used for road, water or air transport; the source of energy; and the infrastructure used to accommodate the transport. Transport operations and logistics as well as transit-oriented development are also involved in evaluation. Transportation sustainability is largely being measured by transportation system effectiveness and efficiency as well as the environmental and climate impacts of the system. Transport systems have significant impacts on the environment, accounting for between 20% and 25% of world energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions. The majority of the emissions, almost 97%, came from direct burning of fossil fuels. In 2019, about 95% of the fuel came from fossil sources. The main source of greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union is transportation. In 2019 it contributes to about 31% of global emissions and 24% of emissions in the EU. In addition, up to the COVID-19 pandemic, emissions have only increased in this one sector. Greenhouse gas emissions from transport are increasing at a faster rate than any other energy using sector. Road transport is also a major contributor to local air pollution and smog.
The Autobahn is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is Bundesautobahn, which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word Bundesautobahn is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track'.
The Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport, abbreviated BMDV, is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its main office is located in Berlin, while the majority of its civil servants and employees work in Bonn, the secondary seat.
Hermann Knoflacher is an Austrian civil engineer. He was the head of the Institute for Transport Planning and Technology at the Vienna University of Technology.
An electric vehicle charging network is an infrastructure system of charging stations to recharge electric vehicles. Many government, car manufacturers, and charging infrastructure providers sought to create networks. Today, charging network vendors include either proprietary solutions, or hardware agnostic solutions. Hardware-agnostic vendors allow for customers to switch out their charge stations and/or switch to a different network vendors ; whereas proprietary vendors do not allow customers to switch.
Transport in Hamburg comprises an extensive, rail system, subway system, airports and maritime services for the more than 1.8 million inhabitants of the city of Hamburg and 5.3 million people in the Hamburg Metropolitan Region.
Momo Car-Sharing was a car-sharing program conducted by Intelligent Energy Europe to promote alternatives to car ownership. It had a total budget of €2,693,644, half of which was co-financed by the European Union (EU). The project name momo was taken from the phrase "more options for energy efficient mobility through car-sharing".
The environmental effects of transport are significant because transport is a major user of energy, and burns most of the world's petroleum. This creates air pollution, including nitrous oxides and particulates, and is a significant contributor to global warming through emission of carbon dioxide. Within the transport sector, road transport is the largest contributor to global warming.
Speed limits in Germany are set by the federal government. All limits are multiples of 10 km/h. There are two default speed limits: 50 km/h (31 mph) inside built-up areas and 100 km/h (62 mph) outside built-up areas. While parts of the autobahns and many other freeway-style highways have posted limits up to 130 km/h (81 mph) based on accident experience, congestion and other factors, many rural sections have no general speed limit. The Road Traffic Regulations (StVO) section on speed begins with the requirement which may be rendered in English:
Any person driving a vehicle may only drive so fast that the car is under control. Speeds must be adapted to the road, traffic, visibility and weather conditions as well as the personal skills and characteristics of the vehicle and load.
PTV GmbH is a German company specializing in software and consulting services for traffic and transportation and mobility. Their transport planning software, Vision Traffic Suite comprise the PTV Group's product portfolio. According to the manufacturer; over 2,500 customers in more than 120 countries use the Vision Traffic Suite in the fields of transport modelling and traffic flow calculation. PTV ranks among the top 1,000 global market leaders in Germany according to Germany's Manager Magazine.
The Ministry of Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology is the government ministry of Austria in charge of traffic, research, innovation, energy, and environmental protection.
The adoption of plug-in electric vehicles in Germany is actively supported by the German Federal Government. Under its National Platform for Electric Mobility, Chancellor Angela Merkel set an initial goal in 2010 to deploy one million electric vehicles on German roads by 2020, which was achieved with a six months delay in July 2021. Initially, the government did not provide subsidies to promote sales of plug-in electric vehicles, however, by the end of 2014 it was recognized that the country was well behind the set sales targets. A purchase bonus scheme was approved in 2016, but premium cars were not eligible to the incentive. In order to meet the climate targets for the transport sector, in 2016 the government set the goal to have from 7 to 10 million plug-in electric cars on the road by 2030, and 1 million charging points deployed by 2030.
Handbook Emission Factors for Road Transport (HBEFA) is a Microsoft Access database application providing emission factors, i.e. the specific emissions in g/km, for all current road vehicle categories. Emission factors are provided for all regulated and the most important non-regulated air pollutants as well as for fuel consumption and CO2. HBEFA is used to estimate road transport emissions on different spatial aggregation levels from national to street level.
Vehicles that are powered by fossil fuels, such as gasoline (petrol), diesel, kerosene, and fuel oil are set to be phased out by a number of countries. It is one of the three most important parts of the general fossil fuel phase-out process, the others being the phase-out of fossil fuel power plants for electricity generation and decarbonisation of industry.
By the end of 2016 Austria already fulfilled their EU Renewables Directive goal for the year 2020. By 2016 renewable energies accounted to 33.5% of the final energy consumption in all sectors. The renewable energy sector is also accountable for hosting 41,591 jobs and creating a revenue of 7,219 million euros in 2016.
The VAG Class DT2 is an electric multiple unit (EMU) train type operated by the Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg on the Nuremberg U-Bahn system. It is a derivative of the MVG Class B, in service on the Munich U-Bahn since 1981.
Matthias Gastel is a German politician of Alliance 90/The Greens who has been serving as a member of the Bundestag since 2013.
The Technical University Ingolstadt of Applied Sciences is a German public research-oriented university of applied sciences located in Ingolstadt. Founded in 1994, it currently has around 6,500 students in five faculties and offers more than 80 courses of study. The central focus of research and teaching are in technology and business. The main campus is located in the center of Ingolstadt. The second campus is located in Neuburg an der Donau.
The 9-Euro-Ticket was a German scheme through which passengers could travel for 9 euros (€) per month on local and regional transport in all of Germany. The tickets were valid for June, July, or August 2022. The offer aimed at reducing energy use amid the 2021–2022 global energy crisis. Another aim was to ease the cost of living crisis.
Regine Günther is a German politician. From December 8, 2016, to December 21, 2021, Günther served as Senator for Environment, Transport, and Climate Protection in the Berlin Senate. Prior to this role, she directed the Climate Protection and Energy department at WWF Germany for 16 years. Later, she held the position of Director General for Policy and Climate at the organization and served as Interim Climate and Energy Practice Leader at WWF International.
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 2326 accessible at "Umsteuern erforderlich: Klimaschutz im Verkehrssektor" (in German). 23 November 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2020.{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 3658 accessible at Klimaschutzbeitrag des Verkehrs bis 2050 (in German). Umweltbundesamt. 7 June 2016. Retrieved 22 September 2020.{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) Commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport, Format: PDF, KBytes: 16634 accessible at "Publikationen zur Erhebungswelle 2008". Mobilität in Deutschland (in German). Retrieved 22 September 2020. (see "Ergebnisbericht MiD 2008" (PDF, 16MB)) {{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 338 accessible at Umweltauswirkungen von Geschwindigkeitsbeschränkungen (in German). Umweltbundesamt. 19 March 2009. Retrieved 22 September 2020.{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 2326 accessible at "Umsteuern erforderlich: Klimaschutz im Verkehrssektor" (in German). 23 November 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2020.{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 5347 accessible at "Studien" (in German). Retrieved 22 September 2020. (see „Sektorkopplungsstudie: Sektorkopplung durch die Energiewende“)Mit den neuen Höchstgeschwindigkeiten sinke das Risiko, dass ein von einem Auto erfasster Fußgänger sterbe, um 80 Prozent.
About a quarter of passengers aren't traveling point to point, but rather going to a hub airport and then hopping on a long-haul plane [...] no alternative but to more than double their travel time
At the current rail speeds, carbon savings do not offset travel time losses
{{citation}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link), Format: PDF, KBytes: 2326 [1]