On the road to fossil-free public transport: The case of Swedish bus fleets

Public transport is important for Sweden to acquire a fossil-fuel independent vehicle fleet by 2030. The aim of this paper is to assess the status of Swedish public bus fleets towards decarbonization, and explore factors affecting regional performance variations and fuel choices. Environmental performance indicators such as renewable fuel shares, CO2 emissions, and energy efficiency are analyzed nationally and regionally. Fuel preferences and best practices are investigated through a survey and interviews with experts working with strategic planning at Public Transport Authorities. Almost 60% of the bus transport volume ran on renewables in 2014 compared to 8% in 2007, but regional variations are significant, partly due to factors such as driving conditions, bus and fuel types, typical trip lengths, and climatic conditions. However, there is no strong correlation between population densities or bus transport volume and the share of renewables achieved. This places political will, strategic planning and policies to promote public transport as key factors affecting renewable fuel deployment. Environmental factors are a priority when choosing fuels, while barriers to renewable fuels are mainly economic and political. Meanwhile, despite the overall progress, achievements in energy efficiency improvement are falling short in comparison to emissions reduction and adoption of renewable fuels, thus requiring further attention.