Abstract

The transportation industry in Pakistan is growing rapidly which in turn has raised the cost of energy imports, usage of petroleum products, air pollution, and traffic congestion. It is perturbing that the world is too much dependent on fossil fuels to meet its energy requirements. In order to address energy, economic and environmental problems of any nation, electrification of road transportation appears to be a game-changer. The aim of this study is to help implement a green transportation system in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. This study compares the financial and environmental costs of using electric, diesel, and solar buses. It also assesses the viability of using suitable electric vehicles (EVs) for Islamabad and Rawalpindi’s public transit systems and considers several technological choices. Electric vehicles (EVs) provide a solution to these problems. Hence, switching from fossil fuel vehicles (FFVs) to EVs is a necessary step in decarbonizing the country’s transportation sector and reversing its dire socioeconomic situation. In this study, the applied quantitative and qualitative analysis forms the foundation of the primary research design as we examine the energy usage and consumption in Plug-In Electric Vehicles (PEVs) for the current private services in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. In this paper, socio-environmental and financial comparison among FFVs, EVs and Solar buses have been evaluated. The study’s findings indicate that solar buses use only 18% energy as compared to electric buses which use 30% while diesel buses use 52% for same seating capacity and same distance covered. However, batteries powered buses are currently more expensive than diesel buses. Although it costs more than diesel buses, using electric and solar buses is beneficial for both human and the environment.