Out of the 237 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions produced in Colombia in 2014, fuels for land transport were the largest human-generated source. But by 2030, Colombia aims to reduce annual emissions by 4.24 million tons. To meet this ambitious target, the transport sector needs to accelerate the pace of decarbonization, especially among heavy-duty, high-mileage vehicles such as buses.

Large-scale electrification requires designing and implementing policies that increase demand for electric vehicles and creating regulatory standards for their adoption. By increasing procurement of electric buses (e-buses) in three cities, WRI will directly reduce emissions in Colombia. This project also has the indirect benefit of creating tools, financial models and guidebooks that can help enable large-scale change in other urban mobility systems.

WRI provides tools and technical assistance to transit officials and other stakeholders to enable them to plan for the deployment of e-buses. We support the planning process to procure e-buses through three key activities:

  • City-level technical assistance: At the local level, this project will both persuade and enable decision-makers to procure e-buses. The project persuades stakeholders by providing the data to make the case for e-buses and their benefits to the environment, health and to COVID-19 recovery. It will simultaneously enable stakeholders to procure e-buses by providing technical assistance for elements such as operational charging analysis and financial planning.
  • National-level capacity building: The project also provides capacity building and training to the national government, working closely with the Colombian Ministry of Transportation.
  • E-bus guidebook: The project will produce concrete methodologies for assessing e-bus projects in Colombia and a guidebook compiled from lessons learned. This guide will allow the Ministry of Transportation to support the development, monitoring and implementation of e-bus procurement in more cities.

Cover image credit: Claudio Olivares Medina/Flickr