Alternative Fuels Instructure – travelling wide on low-emission?

The European Green Deal, EU energy transition and EU sustainable mobility strategy all aim to transform the power sector and transport sector. Here the alternative fuels infrastructure directive and strategy plays a crucial role in enabling this transformation, which necessitates new sector coupling between the energy sector and the automotive sector, coordination across multi governance levels and investments in new infrastructures at all levels. Simultaneously, national governments have to decarbonise transport by phasing-in low emission cars, mainly electric cars. From a governance perspective the EU alternative fuels infrastructure entails coordination between different levels of public authorities and private actors to ensure that there are charging point in buildings, public parking and ‘petrol’ stations in all member states, and that these charging points are standardized. This paper examines the role of different actors and institutions in this transformation especially in relation to the challenges in rolling out alternative fuels infrastructures thereby enabling long distance travel and supporting the uptake of low-emission vehicles at national level. The paper maps actors’ different competences and analyses how these competences overlap or creates gaps that create barriers to EU transport decarbonization. Overall, the paper contributes with insights into the implementation of the European Green Deal and EU sustainable mobility strategy.