Sustainability of the transport sector during the last 20 years: evidences from a panel of 35 countries

Abstract

Between 1990 and 2015, the annual global amount of CO2 emission generated by transport has increased by 68%, from around 4.6 GtCO 2 to around 7.7 GtCO2 Technological advances towards eco friendly vehicles and policy incentives promoting environmental friendly modes of transport have thus been offset by economic growth and increa sing mobility. This study questions the relationship between economic growth and sustainability performance of transport sector. It adds to the literature new insights concerning recent trends in the relationship between gross domestic product and various aspects of transport sustainability such as carbon footprint, carbon intensity and transport safety. A particular attention is given to discussing the emerging issues of “carbon inequality” and the role of political entities that contribute most to global CO2 emissions, such China, USA and the EU. Finally, this study adds to the literature a composite index of transport sustainability performance and explores between country inequalities in terms of sustainability performance.