Transport and low-carbon fuel: A study of public preferences in Spain

Transport is essential for the control of future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and thus a target for active policy intervention in the future. Yet, social preferences for policies are likely to play an important role. In this paper we first review the existing literature on preferences regarding low-GHG car fuels, but also covering policy instruments and strategies in this area. We then present the results of a survey of Spanish households aimed at measuring preferences for climate change policies. We find a positive willingness to pay (WTP) (in the form of higher car fuel prices) for a policy to reduce GHG emissions through biofuels. There is, however, significant heterogeneity in public preferences due to personal motivations (accounted for via factor analysis of responses to attitudinal questions) and to socio-demographic variables.