Sustainability of Europe’s mobility systems 2024

The European Climate Law sets out a legal commitment for Europe to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. To achieve this, reducing GHG emissions is necessary in all sectors of Europe’s economy. At the same time, the European Commission’s (EC) Communication on Zero Pollution put forward the ambition for 2030 to reduce by 55% the health impacts of air pollution and by 30% the share of people chronically disturbed by transport noise compared to 2005. However, unlike other sectors th…

The European Climate Law sets out a legal commitment for Europe to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. To achieve this, reducing GHG emissions is necessary in all sectors of Europe’s economy. At the same time, the European Commission’s (EC) Communication on Zero Pollution put forward the ambition for 2030 to reduce by 55% the health impacts of air pollution and by 30% the share of people chronically disturbed by transport noise compared to 2005. However, unlike other sectors that have reduced their emissions in recent decades, transport emissions of GHG and of some pollutants such as ammonia (NH₃) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) continue to grow. In 2022, GHG emissions from the transport sector represented around a quarter of the EU total.

Passenger cars are responsible for more than 75% of transport activity in Europe (measured in passenger kilometres). This activity has increased significantly in the last 26 years, peaking in 2019 and already recovering in 2021 after a decline following the COVID-19 pandemic. While public transport offers a more sustainable profile compared to private modes of transport, its share in total passenger transport has changed very little. Passenger cars are still the preferred mode of transport, and their number has increased in recent years.