Motorized Two-Wheeled Vehicle Emissions in India: Behavioral and Institutional Issues

Motor vehicle activity is growing rapidly in Indian cities, as in other Asian cities, with serious impacts, including deteriorating urban air quality. Motorized two-wheeled (M2W) vehicles, which provide affordable mobility to millions, form the bulk of the motor vehicle fleet and contribute significantly to transport emissions. Vehicle and fuel technologies are important and have been vastly improved since the 1990s. However, on the basis of an in-depth survey of vehicle users and an analysis of emerging trends in consumer preferences, policies, and industry plans, this paper demonstrates various important ways in which user preferences and choices relating to vehicle purchase, operation, and maintenance, interacting with institutional and technological factors, contribute to emissions and affect policy implementation, particularly with reference to M2W vehicles in India. The paper highlights the importance of considering the interaction of these factors, and how users and other actors are affected by and respond to policies, in more effectively addressing emissions from M2W vehicles and other vehicles, especially given in-use realities and constraints.