Tracking the European transition from fuel dependence to sustainable mobility

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This study aims to track the EU’s shift from fuel dependence to sustainable mobility, assessing current impacts and future efforts for low- and zero-emission vehicles and renewable fuels to reduce crude hydrocarbon imports and greenhouse gas emissions. The paper uses methods of composite indices of fuel dependence and greenhouse gas emission intensity, decomposition analysis for crude hydrocarbon imports and greenhouse gas emissions, and the causal relationship between transport traffic and sustainable mobility objectives. Empirical results indicate that deploying sustainable mobility in the EU saved 10 million tons of crude oil imports and prevented 49 million tCO2eq emissions. Advancements in sustainable mobility were more effective in curbing greenhouse gas emissions (4.7%) than in reducing crude hydrocarbon imports (1.9%) from 2013 to 2022. Projections for the EU’s 2025 objectives indicate significant efforts needed to avoid an extra 61 million tCO2eq, including adding over 13 million zero-emission transport units and producing about 2 million tons of sustainable fuel. Both targets are currently at risk. The study highlights the latent potential in other hydrocarbons that can be transformed from non-fossil energy sources. Therefore, monitoring the impact of sustainable mobility is a crucial task in reducing fuel dependence and greenhouse gas emissions from transport. It enables informed decisions and strategy adaptations and ensures that environmental and economic targets are met both timely and effectively.

Acknowledgment
This article is funded by the National Research Foundation of Ukraine within the framework of Creation of the Production of Synthetic Liquid Fuel from Coal in Ukraine in the War and Post-War Periods project (registration number 2022.01/0061) implemented within Science for the Reconstruction of Ukraine in the War and Post-War Periods competition.

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    • Figure 1. Causal loop diagram of the relationships in sustainable mobility objectives and GHG emissions (left: road transport; right: rail transport, aviation, and shipping)
    • Figure 2. The EU’s fuel dependence, 2013–2022
    • Figure 3. The EU’s emission intensity from fuel combustion, 2013–2022
    • Figure 4. The decomposition of changes in the import of crude hydrocarbons to the EU, 2013–2022
    • Figure 5. Decomposition of the impact of fuel consumption on the import of crude hydrocarbons by transport modes in the EU, 2013–2022
    • Figure 6. Decomposition of changes in GHG emissions in the EU by means of transport, 2013–2022
    • Figure 7. A quantitative assessment of GHG emission reductions by 2025 through the deployment of sustainable mobility
    • Conceptualization
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Mykola Kyzym
    • Funding acquisition
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Mykola Kyzym
    • Methodology
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Iryna Hubarieva, Tetiana Salashenko
    • Project administration
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Mykola Kyzym
    • Supervision
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Mykola Kyzym, Iryna Hubarieva
    • Writing – original draft
      Viktoriia Khaustova, Iryna Hubarieva, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov
    • Investigation
      Mykola Kyzym, Yevhen Kotliarov
    • Writing – review & editing
      Mykola Kyzym, Yevhen Kotliarov
    • Data curation
      Iryna Hubarieva, Yevhen Kotliarov
    • Formal Analysis
      Iryna Hubarieva, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov
    • Resources
      Iryna Hubarieva, Yevhen Kotliarov, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov
    • Visualization
      Iryna Hubarieva, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov
    • Software
      Yevhen Kotliarov, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov
    • Validation
      Yevhen Kotliarov, Tetiana Salashenko, Mykyta Khaustov