Cross-national examination of facilitators and hindrances to the public acceptance of hydrogen refuelling facilities

Abstract

Recognising the factors that shape the public acceptance of hydrogen refuelling facilities is essential for gaining social support for the widespread implementation of hydrogen infrastructure. This study applies a cross-national research perspective to investigate the public acceptance of hydrogen refuelling facilities using stated-preference survey data. Moreover, multidimensional explanatory variables encompassing hydrogen energy awareness levels, hydrogen refuelling station configurations, residential characteristics, car ownership and use, and sociodemographics are used to interpret public acceptance. The data revealed that 21.1 %, 45.5 %, and 31.5 % of the respondents in Japan, Spain, and Norway expressed support for such facilities near their residences, respectively. An important discovery was the validation of nonproportional odds in acceptance measurements across countries, which challenges the conventional assumptions of parallel regression and suggests that distinct behavioural determinants shape positive, negative, and neutral attitudes. Consequently, a generalised ordinal logistic regression approach was applied to identify the determinants of varying acceptance levels and mitigate the biases from nonproportional odds. In addition to identifying facilitators and hindrances, the results highlight several predictors with polarising effects. These findings provide public feedback for enhancing the planning of hydrogen infrastructure and offer potential pathways for hydrogen risk communication and policymaking.