User Acceptance of Electric Vehicles in the French-German Transnational Context

Ensslen, Axel; Jochem, Patrick; Fïchtner, Wolf; Schäuble, Johannes; Babrowski, Sonja · 2013 · OpenAlex-citations

DOI: 10.5445/ir/1000045139

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (DOI — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This paper investigates the user acceptance of Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) within the French-German transnational context, specifically addressing the barriers to cross-border mobility. The research is motivated by the need to reduce CO2 emissions and fossil fuel dependence, alongside the technical and regulatory obstacles preventing seamless electric vehicle usage across borders. Key challenges identified include incompatible hardware standards (specifically Type 2 vs. Type 3 charging plugs) and software interoperability issues regarding authentication and billing. The study aims to provide recommendations for European standardization processes to facilitate cross-border electric mobility. The research was conducted as part of the CROME (Cross-border Mobility for Electric Vehicles) project, which involved a fleet test of approximately 100 BEVs in the Upper Rhine region. The vehicles were primarily company fleet cars used by multiple individuals. The methodology combined technical infrastructure analysis with a user acceptance study. To address software interoperability, the project tested an (e)Mobility Brokering Service developed by Bosch, designed to enable authorization, billing, and status communication between different charging service providers. User acceptance was evaluated through online questionnaires distributed to users and fleet managers, supplemented by technical data collection via data loggers and smartphones. The analysis presented focuses on 115 valid responses from the first online questionnaire, collected between October 2011 and July 2012, alongside secondary data from the German Mobility Panel to assess the relationship between community size and parking availability. The findings reveal that BEV acceptance is highest among individuals living in communities with fewer than 5,000 inhabitants, those with two or more cars in the household, and those with higher annual mileage and commuting distances. Socio-demographic analysis of the CROME sample showed that respondents were predominantly male, aged 40–60, and had higher-than-average household incomes. A critical finding concerns infrastructure dependency: while most respondents had private parking, the availability of such space correlates strongly with community size. Statistical analysis using χ²-tests on German mobility data confirmed that residents of smaller communities are significantly more likely to have private parking and multiple vehicles, whereas urban residents often park on kerbsides, limiting their ability to charge BEVs at home. Consequently, public charging infrastructure is more critical for urban dwellers. The study also noted that the primary motivation for BEV adoption was environmental concern, and that cross-border mobility was largely hindered by the lack of standardized hardware and interoperable software services during the survey period. The significance of this work lies in its contribution to the European standardization debate for electric mobility infrastructure. By demonstrating the technical feasibility of interoperable charging services through the CROME project, the authors argue for unified standards to remove cross-border barriers. Furthermore, the socio-demographic insights highlight that early adopters are often rural or suburban multi-car households, suggesting that achieving broader market penetration requires addressing the specific infrastructure needs of urban populations, particularly regarding public charging availability. The study underscores that while environmental motivation drives initial adoption, practical convenience and infrastructure reliability are essential for sustained acceptance and diffusion.

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed.

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-26; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• acceptance adoption