Social Barriers to Sustainable Transition: The Case of Mobility Systems in Central Europe

Talk by Anna Nicińska (University of Warsaw) as part of the Research Seminar Series of the IOS Economics Department.

Sustainable transitions are the answer to climate change induced instability that challenges current societies. Air pollution is the major health risk and private cars’ use is responsible for vast portion of pollutants (specifically NOX, PM10, CO2). In contrast to other emissions’ sources (energy supply and industry), emissions’ growth from transport did not slow down in the last decade. Present study aims to examine institutional barriers to the reduction of private car ownership and use, and to the development of mobility as a service. We find that beliefs of the quality of public versus private services and pro-social attitudes impact on car ownership and mobility services’ use, respectively. By studying effects of exposure to communism and regime transition in Central and Eastern European countries, we shed new light on the specific chances and barriers to sustainable transition in formerly communist countries and contribute to the literature on the long-term effects of exposure to communism.