Comprehensive Evaluation of Transport Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction Policies

Various transportation policies can help conserve energy and reduce pollution emissions. Some, called cleaner vehicle strategies in this article, reduce emission rates per vehiclekilometer. Others, called mobility management strategies, reduce total vehicle travel. There is disagreement concerning which approach is most cost effective and beneficial overall. Some previous studies concluded that cleaner vehicle strategies are generally most cost effective and beneficial, while others favored mobility management strategies. These different conclusions tend to reflect different analysis scope. Analyses that favor clean vehicle strategies tend to overlook or undervalue some significant impacts, including lifecycle energy consumption and emissions, rebound effects, and co-benefits from reduced vehicle travel. More comprehensive analysis tends to favor mobility management. This article investigates these issues and provides specific recommendations for more comprehensive evaluation of energy conservation and emission reduction strategies. A shorter version of this report was published as: “Comprehensive Evaluation Of Energy Conservation And Emission Reduction Policies,” Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Vol. 47, January 2013, Pages 153-166, available at www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856412001619. Comprehensive Evaluation of Transportation Emission Reduction Strategies Victoria Transport Policy Institute