What is an environmental bus? A socio-technical scenario study

Purpose and goal

The project has investigated opportunities for implementation of electric city buses in a region where biogas production and biogas-fueled buses constitute a well-established socio-technical system. A prerequisite for the justification of electric buses in such a region is that it is possible to identify beneficial and realizable alternative applications for the biogas. The project has described and evaluated different scenarios for electric bus implementation combined with the transfer of biogas to other applications.

Expected results and effects

The project has resulted in a broader understanding amongst the project partners (Östgötatrafiken, Tekniska verken, Linköpings kommun, Linköpings universitet) for the factors that are crucial for well-founded decisions about fuels and energy, and how these factors interact. This in turn has strengthened their ability to evaluate different technology options. The project has also presented scientific contributions on organization, strategy and policy for standardization processes, redeployment and transitions towards more sustainable energy and transport systems.

Planned approach and implementation

Representatives for the project partners have met a total of 10 times and the project also organized a workshop with 24 participants from 12 different organizations. The project has been conducted in three sub-studies, the first focused on cities outside the focal region that already have electric buses in operation, the second analyzed conditions for electric buses in Linköping, and the third made an inventory of alternative applications for biogas. The development of scenarios was based on the results of the different sub-studies.