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E-mobility and Sustainable Tourism Transport in Remote Areas

– Insights from the Alpine case study of South Tyrol (IT)
  • Dr. Anna Scuttari

    Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research, Viale Druso 1, I-39100 Bolzano,

    Anna Scuttari has been Senior Researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research (Bolzano, Italy) since 2012. She holds a doctoral degree in Economics from the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (Germany) and a master’s degree in Tourism and Environmental Economics from the University of Trento (Italy). Her research interests include tourism management, tourism transport, mobilities and consumer behaviour.

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    Dr. Giulia Isetti

    Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research, Viale Druso 1, I-39100 Bolzano,

    Giulia Isetti has been Senior Researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research (Bolzano, Italy) since 2017. She holds a doctoral degree in Classics from the University of Genoa (Italy) and an MBA’s degree from MIB School of Management (Trieste, Italy). Her area of studies focuses on sustainability, mostly in the fields of (electric) mobility, tourism and regional development.

Published/Copyright: September 19, 2019

Zusammenfassung

Im Diskurs über Nachhaltigkeitsaspekte im Tourismus sind Mobilitätsfragen von zentraler Bedeutung. Der Übergang zu einem nachhaltigen und integrierten Verkehrskonzept sollte sowohl das Management des öffentlichen Verkehrs, der aktiven Verkehrsteilnehmer (Fußgänger und Fahrradfahrer) als auch das Management der Elektromobilität einbeziehen. Die explorative Fallstudie in einer alpinen Region in Norditalien (Südtirol) untersucht, welches Potenzial der Elektromobilität im Hinblick auf die Gewährleistung oder sogar Steigerung der Nachhaltigkeitsorientierung von Tourismusdestinationen in abgelegenen Gebieten zukommt. Um die Rahmenbedingungen sowie die touristische Einstellung zur Entwicklung der Elektromobilität zu beurteilen, wurden Nachfrage- und Angebotsperspektiven kombiniert. Eine sekundäre Datenanalyse gibt Aufschluss über die Entwicklung von Strategien und die Bereitstellung von Ladeinfrastrukturen für eine lokale Verbesserung der Elektromobilität. Darüber hinaus wurde eine Online-Befragung durchgeführt, um Verhaltensinformationen zur Einstellung der Besucher in Bezug auf die Elektromobilität im Allgemeinen sowie vor Ort zu sammeln. Hierzu wurden mittels einer zielgerichteten Stichprobe mehr als 1.000 Touristen ausgewählt, die das Gebiet bereits besucht haben. Die vorliegenden Ergebnisse geben Aufschluss über wahrgenommene Barrieren und Desiderata, was die Weiterentwicklung von E-Tourismus-Angeboten anbelangt. Sie unterstreichen außerdem das Potenzial der Destination, die E-Mobilitätsinfrastruktur als Instrument für Produkt- und Marktinnovation im Tourismus zu nutzen.

Abstract

The discourse on sustainability in tourism cannot disregard mobility issues. The transition towards sustainable and integrated transport should include the management of public transport, active modes (pedestrian and bike traffic) and e-mobility solutions. In order to investigate the potential of e-mobility in guaranteeing and possibly increasing sustainability of tourism destinations in remote areas, an exploratory case study has been conducted in South Tyrol, an Alpine region in Northern Italy. Demand and supply perspectives were compounded to assess the framework conditions and the tourist attitudes towards e-mobility development. A secondary data analysis on the development of policies and supply of charging infrastructure for the local e-mobility enhancement was performed. Moreover, a purposive sample of more than 1,000 tourists visiting the area was completed to collect by means of behavioural information on visitors’ attitudes towards e-mobility in general and on site. Results shed some light on visitors’ perceived barriers, as well as desiderata concerning the further development of e-tourism offers. They highlight also the potential for the destination to use e-mobility infrastructure as leverage for product and market innovation in tourism.

About the authors

Dr. Anna Scuttari

Dr. Anna Scuttari

Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research, Viale Druso 1, I-39100 Bolzano,

Anna Scuttari has been Senior Researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research (Bolzano, Italy) since 2012. She holds a doctoral degree in Economics from the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt (Germany) and a master’s degree in Tourism and Environmental Economics from the University of Trento (Italy). Her research interests include tourism management, tourism transport, mobilities and consumer behaviour.

Dr. Giulia Isetti

Dr. Giulia Isetti

Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research, Viale Druso 1, I-39100 Bolzano,

Giulia Isetti has been Senior Researcher at the Center for Advanced Studies of Eurac Research (Bolzano, Italy) since 2017. She holds a doctoral degree in Classics from the University of Genoa (Italy) and an MBA’s degree from MIB School of Management (Trieste, Italy). Her area of studies focuses on sustainability, mostly in the fields of (electric) mobility, tourism and regional development.

Acknowledgements

The research leading to these results is part of the project Culture Building and territorial Development. Come preparare un territorio alla rivoluzione disruptive dell’e-mobility, funded by Jaguar Land Rover Italia, in collaboration with Philipp Corradini, Mirjam Gruber, Gerhard Vanzi, Nives Della Valle, Alyona Zubaryeva (Eurac Research). We are grateful to the anonymous referees for their encouragement and constructive advice.

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Published Online: 2019-09-19
Published in Print: 2019-09-25

© 2019 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

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