Although EU encourages the development of rail urban transport as the answer to challenges related to the noise level, air quality, accidents, congestion, etc., by research and innovation projects, the development of electric transport as individual transport mode is encouraged as well. “We must continue the innovation programmes which contribute to reaching the objective of emission reduction, removing gradually the conventional vehicles and increasing the usage of electric vehicles and public transport”, declared the European Commissioner for Transport, Siim Kallas at the launch of the Smart Cities and Communities European Innovation Partnership, programme which aims at implementing the projects in the field of energy, transport and information technology whose financing will be much higher (compared to previous years) starting with this year.
But “the electric transport service provision will indeed need to be situated in an area that is complementary to the private car market (in which electric vehicles can also play a specific role). Several urban rail service providers see the opportunity of capitalizing on their knowledge about power management and procurement to establish EV based services, as feeder and last mile solutions for urban rail services”, Ivo Cré, Project Manager – POLIS.
Nevertheless, the introduction of electro-mobility is a complex process which involves great challenges for the authorities, as regards the organisation of the necessary infrastructure and consumers. The development of this transport mode implies the radical change of the entire transport system, especially in urban areas, but also legislative and political regulations.
One thing is clear: the fact that all EU policies are heading to power consumption. Will the electric system be capable to cover the necessary quantity and the power costs until the development of new smart transport systems or is the development of rail urban transport the most viable result? “I do not consider electric vehicles are a threat for rail urban transport, especially since the concept of smart cities has developed in Europe and has encouraged public transport. Likewise, in the field of medium and long distance transport, EU’s objective is the encouragement of railway transport. In addition, electric vehicles require the development of a power supply infrastructure (such as the use of renewable energy sources at local level), investments for making electric batteries efficient (at present their performance is below 18%), investments in research and innovation related to electric or hybrid vehicles etc. Another important element is the price of electric or hybrid vehicles which is still very high”, stated TRAN Vice Chair, Adriana Ţicău.
The STOA report on the eco-efficient transport mentions the fact that a transition is needed for a more sustainable transport system which must face recent challenges and the anticipated ones on the evolutions of the transport sector. According to the conclusions based on the works elaborated so far, the scenarios for the EU eco-efficient transport have already been designed. “The scenarios indicate key factors which provide information related to different transport modes including calculations on the innovations of the environmentally friendly transport which comprise technologies for energy efficiency optimisation, alternative fuels, propulsion technologies (especially electric vehicles and biofuels)”, indicated the report.
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