The European Mobility Week 2021 (SEM 2021) kicks off this year’s edition by putting the health of citizens at the centre. It is the same urban environments that represent more than 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions (UN). A percentage that is too high, which shows the need to rethink the use of urban transport and go beyond environmental benefits, betting on innovative solutions that will mark the next trends in sustainable mobility. BeGas experts are clear that the next innovations in urban transport will take into account, in addition to the reduction of polluting emissions, factors such as public health, safety, the circular economy and savings for institutions and companies, as key aspects to improve the quality of life of citizens.
With its participation in the European Mobility Week 2021, BeGas reaffirms its commitment to sustainable urban transport. All this, to raise awareness among citizens as well as institutions and private companies, of the importance of definitively betting on those solutions that improve the quality of life in cities from an environmental, economic and social perspective.
Following this approach, with which it aims to provide unique ecological solutions in the transport market and guide institutions and companies to be more efficient in the construction of sustainable cities, it establishes the following trends that will triumph in sustainable urban mobility:
Sustainability, present at all points in the production chain
For the transition towards sustainable urban transport to be definitive, the circular economy must be present in each of the decisions taken in this area. Thanks to this change of approach, innovative services such as BeGas have been born, which promote the reuse of fleets of urban trucks and buses, and their re-motorisation, to convert them into ecological vehicles. This option, which replaces highly polluting diesel engines with 100% autogas or biopropane engines, allows trucks and urban buses to be accompanied in their final years of useful life, thus promoting the use of the vehicle and avoiding the generation of more than 80,000 kg of waste in a fleet of five vehicles. The use of biopropane is key to closing the circle, since its 100% renewable composition allows the re-motorized vehicle to be completely respectful of the principles of sustainable mobility.
Innovative solutions for last mile transport
This new variety of transport that focuses on the last journey that a package travels until it is delivered to its recipient, is one of the most powerful trends in sustainable mobility. Considering that online commerce has grown by more than 11% in July 2021, far from the 42% recorded during the second quarter of 2020, innovation at this point is essential for packages to be delivered using more sustainable routes. At BeGas, they are aware of this and, therefore, they are already working, together with a consortium of companies and technological centres, on the development of an ecological engine that will cover this market.
Clean energies in urban transport as protagonists to improve air quality
Air quality in urban centres has become one of the priorities in the sustainable mobility plans of city councils due to the serious consequences that it can have on people’s health. Traffic is, in fact, the main cause of pollution in cities, according to Ecologists in Action. Therefore, the use of clean fuels such as autogas or biopropane are alternatives that can achieve great environmental results. And the fact is that vehicles powered by autogas reduce polluting emissions, such as NOx or suspended particles, by up to 90%. But that is not all, the price of this fuel is between 40% and 50% lower than that of conventional fuels.
Consolidation of shared mobility, also known as ‘shared micromobility’
A term that will continue to sweep through urban centres. Concepts such as car sharing and renting motorbikes, bicycles and scooters per minute of use have rethought the way we move around cities, opening up a new avenue in sustainable urban transport. Traditional public vehicles such as buses are not far behind, a safe and healthy means of transport that is already joining the use of ecological fuels. All of these vehicles will be key in the coming months, as more and more cities are limiting access to urban centres with private vehicles. A clear example is the Distrito Centro regulation approved in the capital. With it, as of 1 January 2023, access and circulation of vehicles without an environmental badge on the roads will be prohibited.
The industry’s commitment to the mobility of the future
Through investment in technological development, there are many projects that have managed to meet the changing needs of cities. In the case of BeGas, this development materialises in the inclusion of biopropane, an energy generated from waste and debris in more than 60% (the rest are vegetable oils of sustainable origin), as a propellant for its AVG engines. These engines have the latest European Euro VI-D approval and obtain the Eco-DGT label. In this way, the environmental impact of heavy vehicles in the city will have a carbon-neutral footprint.
Public-private collaboration with the aim of building more transversal mobility plans
The line between the public and the private is increasingly thin. And some administrations have left infrastructure plans behind and have begun to make more global and transversal transport and mobility plans. In France, for example, they already have a Mobility Guidance Law, the first legal regulation of a European state that regulates mobility as a whole. In the case of Spain, initiatives such as the Mobility Strategy 2030, the Strategic Energy Framework, or the Decarbonisation Strategy to 2050 that the Government is preparing, have already hinted that they will follow the same direction. Companies such as BeGas also support this sustainable approach by positioning themselves alongside institutions of all sizes, helping them on the path towards the decarbonisation of transport.
