Climatic and socioeconomic conditions jointly drive the carbon emissions of the urban passenger transport sector

Bibliographic Data

ID22230759
AuthorsSiyan Chen (0000-0003-1257-8988, Qingdao University), Haiyan Duan (0000-0002-2094-8195, Qingdao University, corresponding author), Junhua Song (Qingdao University), Zhiyuan Duan (0009-0009-6869-2262, Qingdao University, corresponding author), Bailin He (0000-0003-1700-2056, Qingdao University, corresponding author), Zhenhui Gao (0000-0002-2022-3733, Qingdao University), Lixiao Zhang (0000-0002-7936-9171, Beijing Normal University)
Year2025
Volume12
Issue1
Publication date2025-07-19
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHumanities and Social Sciences Communications (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2662-9992 • E-ISSN: 2662-9992
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1057/s41599-025-05496-2
OpenAlexW4412959760
LanguageEN
References cited70

Because of the dramatic rise in vehicle holdings, 21% of global energy consumption and nearly a quarter of carbon emissions now come from the transportation sector. However, the carbon emissions of the urban passenger transport sector ( CEUPT ) in provincial regions across different climatic zones and the influence of climate conditions on the CEUPT remain ambiguous. Herein, the CEUPT values of 31 provinces in China are quantified by constructing a “bottom-up” calculation model. Then, we elucidate the mechanisms through which climate and socioeconomic conditions jointly influence CEUPT . China’s CEUPT amounted to 483.7 Mt CO2, with a carbon intensity of 0.108 kgCO2/km in 2019. Private cars and motorcycles are the primary sources of carbon emissions, accounting for 295.8 Mt CO2 (61.2%) and 105.66 Mt CO2 (21.9%), respectively. Climate conditions determine people’s initial choice of travel mode, whereas socioeconomic conditions enable people to choose their preferred mode of travel, leading to spatiotemporal variations in the CEUPT . These findings should serve as references for government departments in regions with diverse climates to more extensively consider climate and socioeconomic conditions when formulating energy-saving policies for the urban passenger transport sector, thereby developing more targeted strategies to control the CEUPT

Business · Carbon fibers · Economic geography · Economics · Environmental health · Environmental planning · Geography · Greenhouse gas · Natural resource economics · Passenger transport · Socioeconomic status · Transport engineering · Computer Science · Engineering · Environmental Science · Transportation Planning and Optimization · Urban Transport and Accessibility · Vehicle emissions and performance · Ecology

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access