Journey to a Green Future: Status, Policies and Barriers of Sustainable Transportation with Public Transit and Electric Vehicles in the U.S.
Open Access DepositedThe transportation sector is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., with two-thirds of these emissions coming from personal vehicles and light trucks. Decarbonizing transportation is essential in the fight against climate change. Public transportation and electric vehicles (EVs) are two key pathways to achieving this goal, though both face significant challenges in increasing adoption. This dissertation investigates these barriers by analyzing commuters' preferences in the Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia (DMV) metropolitan area and examining national data on EV listings. Survey data from DMV commuters explores their preferences between public transit and driving when complex transfers are involved. Findings show that transfer penalties are linked to bus usage: replacing buses with metro services in trips involving transfers could increase ridership by up to 10\%. Commuters who regularly drive assign a 50\% higher penalty to bus-related transfers compared to transit riders, despite valuing metro trips similarly. These results suggest that metro network expansion could effectively reduce driving. The second part of the study analyzes vehicle utilization patterns using a large-scale dataset of plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) listings. EVs are driven, on average, 4,800 miles less annually than conventional gasoline vehicles, with Tesla models showing slightly higher utilization but still 2,800 miles less than gasoline cars. These findings suggest that many current EV owners use their vehicles for partial rather than full daily needs, possibly reflecting a multi-car household effect. Additionally, EV distribution analysis reveals that ZEV states and Democratic regions offer easier access to EVs, while buyers in non-ZEV or Republican regions must travel 50\% to 100\% farther to access multiple dealers with available EVs. This research highlights critical insights into public transportation ridership and EV adoption, informing policies aimed at reducing transportation-related emissions.
- All rights reserved
Notice to Authors
If you are the author of this work and you have any questions about the information on this page, please use the Contact form to get in touch with us.