Assessment of road transportation measures for global net-zero emissions considering comprehensive energy systems

Abstract

Many countries are seeking to achieve net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. Electrification is a key measure for achieving this goal in all sectors, including the transport sector. Meanwhile, there are several emission reduction options in the road transport sector for achieving net-zero emissions when entire energy systems are considered. It is important to consider entire energy systems not only in the transport sector, but also in the energy supply sectors, including emission offset measures of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) under several conditions of energy supply and transport constraints. This article presents the assessment of scenarios estimated by a global energy systems model—the DNE21+ model—that describes detailed technologies considering differences among regions/countries, followed by the comparative evaluation of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), International Energy Agency, and BP scenarios. Hybrid electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles could also be cost-effective, even under the net-zero world, thanks to the emission offset of CDR under the scenarios with the costs and potentials of CDR which are consistent with the IPCC scenarios and broadly reviewed future costs of direct air capture (DAC) which is one of the CDR.