Why railway passengers are more polluting in the peak than in the off-peak; environmental effects of capacity management by railway companies under conditions of fluctuating demand

摘要

Given the difference between peak and off-peak occupancy rates in public transport, the average emission per traveller kilometre is lower in the peak than during the off-peak period. However, in this paper it is argued that it is much more fruitful to analyse environmental effects in marginal than in average terms. The issue appears to depend to capacity management policies of public transport suppliers that are facing increases in demand both during the peak and off-peak period. A detailed analysis of capacity management of the Netherlands Railways reveals that the off-peak capacity supply is mainly dictated by the demand levels during the peak period.