Electromobility: Electric cars, plug-in hybrids and batteries

In the context of greenhouse gas emissions in Germany, transport is still a problem area: while emissions from industry, buildings and agriculture fell between 1990 and 2019, emissions from the transport sector did not.

Electromobility can help resolve this pressing environmental problem. But this cannot be achieved simply by switching to electric motors. The move towards greater sustainability is unlikely to succeed without changes both in the share of motorised private transport and in the type of vehicles used – SUVs are still very much in fashion.

The electric motor is very energy-efficient, but this advantage is diminished if transport continues to be dominated by conventional motorised private transport with its low efficiency per person-kilometre. The need for raw materials for vehicle manufacture remains at the same high level.

As with many technical developments – another example from the transport sector being autonomous driving – the environmental benefit therefore depends not on whether electromobility prevails but on what form it takes. Climate-friendly mobility is not just a question of technological development. It must be accompanied by awareness of sustainable travel behaviour, and the policy framework must be designed to reward such behaviour.