EEA Transport and Environment Report, 2021: Decarbonising road transport: the role of vehicles, fuels and transport demand

Over the last three decades, the EU climate and energy policy framework has resulted in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions in all sectors except transport. The European Green Deal states that achieving climate neutrality by 2050 requires a 90% reduction by 2050 in all transport GHG emissions compared with 1990. Road transport plays a crucial role in achieving this target, as it accounts for more than 70% of the EU's transport GHG emissions.

The environmental externalities related to road t…

Over the last three decades, the EU climate and energy policy framework has resulted in greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions in all sectors except transport. The European Green Deal states that achieving climate neutrality by 2050 requires a 90% reduction by 2050 in all transport GHG emissions compared with 1990. Road transport plays a crucial role in achieving this target, as it accounts for more than 70% of the EU's transport GHG emissions.

The environmental externalities related to road transport, including GHG emissions, can be curbed by a combination of 'avoid, shift and improve' (ASI) strategies (based on Dalkmann and Brannigan (2007)):

• 'Avoid' strategies are directed towards reducing the number of trips or trip length.
• 'Shift' strategies aim for a modal shift towards more environmentally friendly transport modes. Together with the avoid strategies, they address transport demand as a determinant of GHG emissions.
• 'Improve' strategies are about improving vehicle and fuel technologies to be more environmentally friendly.

This report analyses the main driving factors underlying the trend in GHG emissions from road transport in the EU, namely the characteristics of the vehicles that are driven, the type of energy they consume, the level of transport activity and the shares of the different transport modes, that are linked to the avoid, shift and improve strategies.

The key questions addressed are:

• How does the EU road transport sector perform in terms of the specific goals for vehicles and the energy they use?
• How is this sector currently contributing to achieving the overarching GHG reduction goals and how will they be reached in the future?
• What are the main policy levers, challenges, obstacles and prospects?