Future priorities for a climate-friendly transport: A European strategic research agenda toward 2030

Abstract

Research is a key factor for a successful reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from transport. This paper summarizes the main results of REACT, a project co-financed by the European Commission, which aimed to develop a European Strategic Research Agenda for low GHG transport. A literature review and a multi-stage expert consultation process were used to map technological and non-technological research areas and evaluate them according to different criteria (i.e., GHG emissions reduction, costefficiency, feasibility, timeframe of research stages). We consulted the research agendas of the European Technologies Platforms on transport and current EU research programs. Expert opinions were collected through web forms, interviews and participation in structured workshops. The REACT Research Agenda identified the following research priorities for a more climate-friendly transport system by 2030: (a) in the short term, costeffective solutions consist of (1) more efficient, lighter vehicles with advanced internal combustion engines, (2) reducing road transport demand and (3) fostering GHG emission legislation; (b) in the medium/long-term, the focus shifts towards (1) electric vehicles and Downloaded by [Cardiff University Libraries], [Lorraine Whitmarsh] at 07:18 24 November 2015 hydrogen, (2) Intelligent Transport Systems, and (3) spatial planning and economic and social measures to reduce transport demand. In addition, one of the main findings identified strong links between technology research and planning, social sciences and economy.

Sustainability Assessment of Fuel Cell Buses in Public Transport

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