The Urgency of Decarbonizing the Mobility and Transport System

Dear Colleagues,

Climate change and global warming represent one of the greatest threats and challenges faced by humankind today. Human activity is increasingly influencing the Earth's climate and temperature, through the emission of large amounts of greenhouse gases (GHG), namely carbon dioxide, methane and nitrogen oxide, which derive mainly from industrial activity, agriculture and the use of motorized vehicles. These gases prevent the release of heat into the atmosphere, causing an increase in the temperature of the air, oceans and the Earth’s surface.

A 2.0 °C increase from pre-industrial times will unequivocally have negative impacts on the natural environment and human health and well-being, including a much greater risk of dangerous and possibly catastrophic changes to the global environment.

With the Paris Agreement at the Conference of the Parties (COP) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) in 2015, countries worldwide have committed to limiting global warming to below 2 °C by the end of the century, striving to reach the goal of 1.5 °C. To accomplish this, countries must reach their emission peaks as soon as possible, to achieve carbon neutrality by the middle of the century.

The share of GHG emissions caused by the transport sector has increased in the EU and represents approximately 24% of total emissions.

It should also be noted that atmospheric pollution in urban areas remains as one of the classic problems of cities, essentially associated with the burning of fossil fuels (gasoline and diesel) in the internal combustion engines of motor vehicles. It has not been easy to reverse the high levels of concentration of pollutants in the atmosphere, with consequences for the health of the citizens and inhabitants who are exposed to them.

The challenges that arise in the area of decarbonization of the mobility and urban transport system are contemplated, directly or indirectly, in the objectives of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development of the United Nations. The following sustainable development goals (SDGs) can be highlighted: SDG 3—Good health and well-being; SDG 7—Affordable and clean energy; SDG 11—Sustainable cities and communities; SDG 13—Climate action.

For these reasons, this Special Issue of Sustainability is seeking scientific and technical contributions regarding transport decarbonization to create a sound scientific and technical background for designing future policies, strategies and actions in this field. Thus, research and/or review articles should include, but are not limited to, the following topics on mobility: system efficiency, trip efficiency and vehicle efficiency, towards achieving a clean and fully decarbonized mobility.

Dr. Paulo Ribeiro
Prof. Dr. José F.G. Mendes
Prof. Dr. Paulo António Alves Pereira
Guest Editors

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• decarbonization
• sustainable development goals (SDG)
• urban mobility
• public transport
• walking
• cycling
• sustainable mobility
• sharing mobility
• electric mobility
• hydrogen vehicles
• GHG emissions
• carbon footprint
• air quality
• transport planning
• mobility management