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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Valuing public acceptance of alternative-fuel buses using a Latent Class Tobit model: A case study in Valencia

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Abstract The introduction of hybrid electric technology for urban public transportation can be considered a valuable stepping stone to low-carbon mobility. Using the contingent valuation method, a sample of 427 respondents were asked about their willingness to pay for the air pollution reductions associated to a scenario of gradual introduction of hybrid electric buses in Valencia, Spain. Results show that 67% of the respondents are willing to pay extra for the adoption of this electric hybrid technology, being the mean willingness to pay € 0.33 per single bus fare. This would imply a 22% hypothetical increase in current bus fares and shows that public acceptance is critical for the successful introduction of these new low-emissions vehicles. Further, this paper differs from previous research in that it addresses the issue of heterogeneity among respondents. Thus, using latent class analysis, based on questions about environmental concerns, we identify three different classes of respondents: high, medium and low environmentally concerned. Mean willingness to pay for each class ranges from €0.25 to €0.38. Then we analyze willingness to pay determinants through the estimation of a Tobit model for each class of respondents. This reaffirms the existence of heterogeneity and accordingly suggests that treating the population as a single homogeneous group of respondents, as is common in the existing literature, may lead to biased parameter estimates and flawed decision-making regarding climate change action.