2025 Volume 16 Article ID: PP4178
Decarbonizing road transport through technology interventions is crucial for reducing global greenhouse gases emissions. However, progress varies significantly across regions due to differences in technology readiness, commercialization, and policy environments. In recent years, the electrification of light-duty and freight vehicles has emerged as a particularly promising pathway, given its increasing commercial availability and improving cost competitiveness. This article analyses the deployment of light-duty electric vehicles (EVs) in the Asia-Pacific region through a comparative review of national policies and strategies. The findings reveal a wide diversity of approaches, largely influences by each country’s energy policies, industrial structure and automotive manufacturing base. While the growing adoption of EV policies signals that the transition to low-carbon road transport is underway, the current pace remains insufficient to meet Net Zero targets by 2050. Accelerated and more ambitious policy actions are urgently needed. Moreover, the transition to electromobility should be understood not only as a technological shift but also a broader societal transformation moving from centralized systems towards more decentralized, inclusive, and resilient structures. This shift offers a unique opportunity to align sustainable transport development with broader goals of demographic resilience and regional economic growth across Asia-Pacific.
