Sustainable Energy Policies for Public Transport Utilities

Abstract

The European countries have committed to ambitious climate and energy targets by 2030. Urban mobility consumes a significant part of global energy. One of the challenges is to make public transport in the city energy-efficient and above all with renewable energies. Based on the important role of public transport in the energy consumption of smart cities, this thesis aims to evaluate and describe the most important stakes in public transport according to energy-related topics and to identify the main tasks in the implementation of a sustainable energy policy from the point of view of a public transport company within an urban environment. In this context, energy saving measures and their monitoring are examined.Based on the review of the literature on energy management and energy efficiency in public transport, a stakeholder analysis and a macroeconomic analysis were carried out. Structured interviews with experts in public transport were conducted and analyzed. These analyzes show that increasing energy efficiency requires a systematic, long-term approach and the use of technical innovations in every mode of transport and its infrastructure, including buildings. The importance of EU legislation is demonstrated by a study of recent developments.The results also indicate the important role of communication and cooperation in achieving the energy goals and the influence of energy management on the company's brand image. On this basis, a draft energy policy is formulated that describes all relevant tasks in the context of energy management in a public transport company, with a focus on energy costs, the electrification of the bus fleet and the introduction of renewable energy sources in daily operation. A monitoring system with three groups of key performance indicators is proposed to monitor the development of the company's energy efficiency and to achieve the goals of energy policy.Further research is recommended on the influencing factors of hydrogen economy and advancing digitalization for public transport.