E-mobility and Sustainable Tourism Transport in Remote Areas

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.