Dear Reader,
the coronavirus crisis has led to a fall in global CO2 emissions. But the same is not necessarily true of NOx and particulate matter, as measurements in several German cities have shown. Driving bans have been one of the main topics for discussion among transport policymakers in recent years. The coronavirus crisis has given us the opportunity to evaluate their effectiveness, because traffic volumes have fallen significantly. It seems that modern combustion engines with effective exhaust treatment systems do not have as much influence on the air quality in conurbations as had previously been assumed and that other causes, including the weather, play a much greater role.
However, many people still see electric vehicles as the only future transport solution. A study recently published by the Leibniz Institute for Economic Research and Yale University comes to the same conclusion and even suggests that incorrect assumptions by consumers about the cost of cars will slow down the mobility transition and make alternative offerings, such as electric cars and public transport, less attractive. The researchers believe that greater transparency about costs would speed up the move toward more sustainable means of transport. It is likely that almost all of the study's authors live in large urban centers with excellent public transport systems and have above-average incomes. By contrast, many countries are largely rural with only few conurbations. There the question is less about the cost of individual mobility and more about how people simply get from A to B. The answer is generally only using a private car. In addition, with the average gross income in Germany in 2019 amounting to around 3880 euros per month, for many normal consumers the purchase of a much more expensive electric car is simply out of the question. Too little attention is paid to these facts during the discussion about the transport transition.
The EU and leading German politicians are calling for a clear emphasis on the environment when the economy is restarted after the coronavirus crisis. In principle, that is an excellent idea. But in the case of transport, it must be based on a consistent, technology-neutral and knowledgeable approach. If we are to protect the climate and reduce air pollution on a global scale and in a lasting and sustainable way, we must understand that electric vehicles are not the be-all and end-all. The market for synthetic fuels urgently needs to be opened up. "In the case of climate change, we already have the vaccine," said Germany's Environment Minister Svenja Schulze recently. That is true and one essential ingredient is the combination of battery electric vehicles, hydrogen and fuel cell powertrains, and synthetic fuels. This is the only way for us to achieve our Paris climate targets. The key to the future of mobility is not "either or," but "both and."
Dr. Alexander Heintzel
Editor in Chief