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Greenhouse gas emissions related to energy production is the main cause of climate change. Transportation accounts for 30% of the total energy consumption, and a reduction in the energy used for mobility is necessary. The 2000-watt society is an environmental concept that fixes a sustainable limit to the energy consumption in different sectors, including mobility. This paper evaluates the energy consumption in several mobility scenarios, and it assesses whether the goal suggested by the 2000-watt society is achievable. We investigate the social characteristics and travel habits of the population living in a case study area. Then, we calculate the modal shift induced by transportation policies such as car-sharing, car-pooling and car-free district. We evaluate the resulting energy consumption, and we compare it with the 2000-watt society limit. We conclude that only a set of measures combining car usage reduction, increase in walking and cycling, and reduction in the total travel distance can achieve the needed energy reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Transport is Australia’s third largest and second fastest growing source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The road transport sector makes up 88% of total transport emissions and the projected emissions increase from 1990 to 2020 is 64%. Achieving prospective emission reduction targets will pose major challenges for the road transport sector. This paper investigates two targets for reducing Australian road transport greenhouse gas emissions, and what they might mean for the sector: emissions in 2020 being 20% below 2000 levels; and emissions in 2050 being 80% below 2000 levels. Six ways in which emissions might be reduced to achieve these targets are considered. The analysis suggests that major behavioural and technological changes will be required to deliver significant emission reductions, with very substantial reductions in vehicle emission intensity being absolutely vital to making major inroads in road transport GHG emissions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]