Demand Development and Fuel Usage on the Road: Alternative Drive Systems Slow to Get Going

The 54 million vehicles in Germany drove almost 720 billion kilometers in 2012. To date, alternative drive systems and fuels have not achieved any notable success in terms of vehicle numbers or vehicle use. However, the diesel engine, which has higher emissions of air pollutants, is gaining ground: diesel vehicles now constitute 29 percent of all passenger vehicles and 43 percent of all kilometers driven. Diesel fuel has been the most important energy source in road transport for ten years now. The proportion of biogenic fuels has stagnated since 2008 at below six percent, natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas cover only 1.5 percent of demand. In terms of alternative drive systems, not only are there promising long-term options, such as electromobility, but short-term meaningful alternatives should not be neglected either. The use of natural gas represents an alternative system with fewer emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants than conventional fuels and is potentially open to renewable energies use. The use of natural gas in the transport sector should therefore continue to be supported.