Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal

The transport sector accounts for around one-quarter of the GHG emissions in Europe, and, in Portugal, it represents almost one-third of the total emissions to the atmosphere. Unfortunately, these emissions have increased in recent years. Hence, cities and countries need plans to decarbonize their p...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Paulo J. G. Ribeiro, José F. G. Mendes
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-06-01
Series:Energies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/12/4286
_version_ 1797487836179464192
author Paulo J. G. Ribeiro
José F. G. Mendes
author_facet Paulo J. G. Ribeiro
José F. G. Mendes
author_sort Paulo J. G. Ribeiro
collection DOAJ
description The transport sector accounts for around one-quarter of the GHG emissions in Europe, and, in Portugal, it represents almost one-third of the total emissions to the atmosphere. Unfortunately, these emissions have increased in recent years. Hence, cities and countries need plans to decarbonize their public transport fleets, and, more specifically, to replace fossil-fueled buses with electric buses that produce zero CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to present a method to decarbonize the bus fleet in Portugal by a scheduled replacement of the current fleet, which is fueled by fossil fuels, with a completely electric fleet, in fourteen years. The study shows that it is possible to replace all Portuguese urban bus fleets with electric vehicles considering that all vehicles will be replaced when reaching the age of 14 years. Replacing the urban bus fleet with zero-emission buses would aid policymakers and bus companies to reduce the GHGs, and therefore contribute to fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, namely, Goal 13—take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
first_indexed 2024-03-09T23:53:29Z
format Article
id doaj.art-4f476b69c96d4acf96c82c5e4c5d03ce
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 1996-1073
language English
last_indexed 2024-03-09T23:53:29Z
publishDate 2022-06-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Energies
spelling doaj.art-4f476b69c96d4acf96c82c5e4c5d03ce2023-11-23T16:28:37ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732022-06-011512428610.3390/en15124286Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in PortugalPaulo J. G. Ribeiro0José F. G. Mendes1Centre for Territory Environment and Construction, School of Engineering, University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimaraes, PortugalDepartment of Civil Engineering, University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimaraes, PortugalThe transport sector accounts for around one-quarter of the GHG emissions in Europe, and, in Portugal, it represents almost one-third of the total emissions to the atmosphere. Unfortunately, these emissions have increased in recent years. Hence, cities and countries need plans to decarbonize their public transport fleets, and, more specifically, to replace fossil-fueled buses with electric buses that produce zero CO<sub>2</sub> emissions. Thus, the main objective of this paper is to present a method to decarbonize the bus fleet in Portugal by a scheduled replacement of the current fleet, which is fueled by fossil fuels, with a completely electric fleet, in fourteen years. The study shows that it is possible to replace all Portuguese urban bus fleets with electric vehicles considering that all vehicles will be replaced when reaching the age of 14 years. Replacing the urban bus fleet with zero-emission buses would aid policymakers and bus companies to reduce the GHGs, and therefore contribute to fulfilling the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, namely, Goal 13—take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/12/4286decarbonizationgreen public transportzero-emissionsbus fleetelectric buses
spellingShingle Paulo J. G. Ribeiro
José F. G. Mendes
Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
Energies
decarbonization
green public transport
zero-emissions
bus fleet
electric buses
title Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
title_full Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
title_fullStr Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
title_full_unstemmed Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
title_short Public Transport Decarbonization via Urban Bus Fleet Replacement in Portugal
title_sort public transport decarbonization via urban bus fleet replacement in portugal
topic decarbonization
green public transport
zero-emissions
bus fleet
electric buses
url https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/12/4286
work_keys_str_mv AT paulojgribeiro publictransportdecarbonizationviaurbanbusfleetreplacementinportugal
AT josefgmendes publictransportdecarbonizationviaurbanbusfleetreplacementinportugal