Abstract
Since the report “Our Common Future” launched sustainable development as a primary goal for society in 1987, both scientific and political discussions about the term’s definition and how to achieve sustainable development have ensued. The manifold negative environmental impacts of transportation are an important contributor to the so-far non-sustainable development in financially rich areas of the world. Thus, achieving sustainable mobility is crucial to achieving the wider challenge of sustainable development. In this article, we limit our sustainability focus to that of energy use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. We discuss whether rebound effects can reveal why sustainable mobility has not been reached. Rebound effects refer to behavioral or other systemic responses after the implementation of new technologies or other measures to reduce energy consumption. Three main strategies exist for achieving sustainable mobility: efficiency, substitution, and volume reduction. (1) The efficiency strategy is based on the idea that environmental problems caused by transport can be improved by developing new and more efficient technologies to replace old, inefficient, and polluting materials and methods; (2) The second strategy—substitution—argues for a change to less polluting means of transport; (3) The volume reduction strategy argue that efficiency and substitution are not sufficient, we must fundamentally change behavior and consumption patterns; people must travel less, and freight volumes must decrease. We found rebound effects associated with all three of the main strategies that will lead to offsetting expected savings in energy use and GHG emissions in the transport sector.
Highlights
Worldwide, the transport sector produced 7.0 GtCO2eq of direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which corresponds to approximately 23% of the total energy-related CO2 emissions
The recently adopted EU target is to reduce GHG emissions levels by 80%–95% from 1990 levels by 2050, the European Commission stated that the goal for the transport sector is 60% because of its complexity [2]
We study the relationship between sustainable mobility and rebound effects, allowing for explanations of rebound effects other than those found in economic theories to explain why strategies that promote energy efficiency and reduction of GHG emissions may not be effective in the transport sector
Summary
The transport sector produced 7.0 GtCO2eq of direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which corresponds to approximately 23% of the total energy-related CO2 emissions. Despite the introduction of more efficient vehicles and the adoption of new policies, continued growth in passenger and freight activity outweighed the results of all mitigation measures in the sense that emissions (and energy use) has continued to grow. 250% worldwide—a growth rate that is higher than any other sector [1] Such as in the EU, the transport sector was responsible for 25% of the energy-related GHG emissions. The recently adopted EU target is to reduce GHG emissions levels by 80%–95% from 1990 levels by 2050, the European Commission stated that the goal for the transport sector is 60% because of its complexity [2]. Energy required for the construction of infrastructure, the manufacture of vehicles, as well as the provision of fuels should be considered Associated with both the efficiency and substitution strategy. Associated with the reduction strategy since a goal of densification could be to reduce travel distances
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
