Transport Decarbonisation in Asia – Is the Glass Half Full?

Abstract

The transport sector in Asia is often pessimistically perceived as a ‘hard to decarbonise’ sector in a ‘hard to mitigate’ region, a situation that is normally depicted, in colloquial terms as “glass half empty.” Data and experience on transport policies and actions from 2000 to 2020 illustrate that this traditional cynical perspective was iatrogenic and has led to delayed climate policies and actions. However, despite limited success on transport policies and actions, recent business-as-usual (BAU) transport Carbon dioxide (CO₂) emission projections in Asia have diverged significantly from predictions that had been made in the early 2000s. This paper explores such developments and explains why the transport and climate change in Asia is rather in a state depicting a ‘glass-half-full,’ as evidenced by a multitude of examples of policies and actions that have significantly avoided or reduced transport CO₂ emissions.