Abstract
Kolkata’s sustainability and liveability are impaired by uncontrolled emissions from vehicles that rely on traditional fossil fuels. Adoption of environment-friendly energy-efficient technologies like Electric Vehicles (EVs) is urgently required in the city. EV is a suitable option for both public and private transport. However, like other new technologies, EVs are also required to be facilitated by different enablers and drivers. Kolkata executed a pilot project of deploying 80 Electric Buses (e-bus) during 2017–2020 and is considering large-scale uptake of e-buses. The purpose of this study is to investigate the various elements that are crucial to accelerated large-scale e-bus adoption in the city. A survey of two hundred stakeholders from ten relevant entities is carried out through the statistical technique of Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The results indicate five key factors for faster e-bus adoption; (i) Successful e-bus pilot project, (ii) Setting up of an EV Accelerator Cell, (iii) Capital and operational Instruments, (iv) Publicity/Awareness Programs, and (v) Awards and Appreciation for the pilot e-bus project deployed in the city.