Innovative mobility in rural areas - The case of the Black Forest

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Rural areas in Germany have a lack of well-structured local public transport systems and are still facing exodus. Furthermore, the German energy transition aims to bring inter alia 1 million electric vehicles (EVs) onto German roads by 2020. The aim of this paper is to analyse if innovative forms of EV-based mobility concepts can better meet the needs of rural communities and contribute to the German energy transition in a sustainable way. Specific mobility concepts were thus tested according to sustainability criteria within a government-funded pilot project in four small communities in the Black Forest. The collected data were used to calculate energy consumption, carbon footprint and costs of the local projects and to compare them with fossil fuelled propulsion systems. Surveys in combination with semi-structured interviews were conducted additionally to assess the social acceptance of EVs within the local population. It could be proven that EVs already represent socially and environmentally promising perspectives in rural areas. Nevertheless, the economic drawbacks of the presented mobility solution are currently still hindering an extensive spread of EVs. Copyright © 2018 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.