Abstract
This paper presents how a post-secondary institution like University of British Columbia’s Okanagan (UBCO) campus can reduce its carbon footprint and be aligned with the government’s target through promoting virtual campus and autonomous electric vehicles (AEVs). Different virtual campus scenarios are developed: online classes only, working-from-home only, and a hybrid of both. In the case of AEVs, alternative penetration rates for levels 2 and 5 are considered. A total of 50 scenarios are tested using a sub-area transport simulation model for UBCO, which is extracted from the regional travel demand forecasting model. The results suggest that a 40% AEV penetration rate coupled with fully in-person classes reduces GHG by ~36% compared to the 2018-level, which will help UBCO to achieve their 2030 emission reduction target and be aligned with the provincial target. The 50% AEV and 10% hybrid virtual campus reduces emissions by ~48%, which is aligned with the 2040 provincial target. A fully virtual campus will help to reach the 2050 provincial target by reducing GHG by ~76%. The results further demonstrate that level 5 AEVs produce lesser emissions than level 2 at a lower AEV penetration rate for the fully in-person campus scenario. At higher penetration rates, level 5 performs better only if it is coupled with 10% of students, faculties and staffs attending virtual campus scenario.
Highlights
To answer the above question, this study investigates the impacts of hybrid campus and usage of autonomous electric vehicles (AEVs) on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for a mid-sized school campus in Canada—i.e., The University of British Columbia’s Okanagan (UBCO)
The results show that travel time has a negative relationship for car, walk, bike, and other modes
The result reveals that individuals are less likely to choose a car if they reside in low-income neighborhoods—i.e., dissemination area (DA) with a higher share of low-income
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. In addition to government agencies, major employers and institutions play a crucial role in achieving these climate emergent targets, as a large portion of the transportation emissions comes from the car-dominant commute travel to work [5]. As most of the universities are planning to get back to inperson class; mainly, in North America, the critical question is: how can schools continue to progress in reducing their carbon footprint and help the government to achieve their target through adopting progressive and emerging GHG mitigation strategies in the post-COVID new normal era?. UBCO is working together with the provincial and federal governments to come up with innovative solutions in reducing GHG emissions In this regard, this study develops a travel demand forecasting model for the UBCO campus and tests different what-if scenarios to identify the effective measures. The findings of this study will provide direct evidence to UBCO and are expected to assist in developing and tracking the progress of their transportation master plan
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