Dwellings Access To Mobility In A Growing Energy Vulnerable Reality

• Autor(a) principal: Bodião, João Pedro Machado
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/160932
• topic: Energy poverty; Transport poverty; Double energy vulnerability; Indicators; Portugal; Dwellings; Domínio/Área Científica::Engenharia e Tecnologia::Engenharia do Ambiente

Modern-day societies, wherever they live, are struggling to cope with both energy demand and energy costs. Not helping, a global pandemic, followed by unexpected geopolitical events, sparked a global energy crisis. In this context, households were led to painful, sharp pressures on their energy bills and pushed into poverty realities. In this regard, international studies are emerging, intending to explore and expand the horizons of ’Energy Poverty (EP)’ as a vulnerability while looking deeper into transport and mobility, acknowledging it as ’Transport Poverty (TP)’. This research has as its primary objective to explore this dimension of vulnerability in access to transport/mobility in Europe, resorting to identifying and analysing relevant indicators for posterior comparison between European nations. These indicators follow one of four different contours: i) metrics that estimate travel time; ii) metrics for affordability of transportation for dwellings according to their household expenditures ceiling; iii) metrics of accessibility; and iv) metrics of availability to transportation as well as the conditions how these are provided. Furthermore, an assessment of the Portuguese perspective for increased insights at a more detailed spatial scale on this subject matter was also undertaken. The current study has revealed that EP is a multifaceted phenomenon that is influenced by a range of social, economic, and environmental factors. Southern European and Balkan countries, more prone to EP manifestation, owing to their correlation with lower incomes and poorly insulated housing exhibit a higher prevalence of EP, which is comparatively lower among Scandinavian countries. Additionally, TP is a critical factor in understanding households’ access to essential services, which has received less attention in the discourse on EP vulnerability studies. Households experiencing EP and TP (described as Double Energy Vulnerability (DEV)) face compounded difficulties in accessing essential services, increasing their vulnerability to poverty and social exclusion, particularly in peri-urban and rural areas. Despite having a significant share of energy-poor households, Portugal has made commendable progress in reducing the number of people unable to adequately warm their homes - one of the main constituents of EP in the country. However, Portuguese TP is a matter of concern, revealing a lack of investment in public transportation services and public transport infrastructures that could potentially benefit those most in need. In conclusion, this study illuminates the complexity of EP in Europe and Portugal and the critical role of TP in exacerbating these challenges. Significant strides can be made towards a more equitable and sustainable future by addressing EP and TP in tandem and considering the unique needs of different regions and demographic groups. Thus, while considering regional nuances and socioeconomic disparities, policymakers must adopt a holistic approach to addressing EP and TP, recognising the synergies between these two forms of poverty and developing integrated policies that alleviate the combined burdens they impose on vulnerable households, ensuring equitable access to essential services.