Understanding the process of adoption of electric jeepneys by transport cooperatives using a stage model

This study aims to understand the process of adoption of electric jeepneys by transport cooperatives in the Philippines. Transport cooperatives are organizations that typically own, operate and manage fleets of fuel-based traditional jeepneys. These jeepneys are polluting and constitute one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions. For a transition to low-carbon mobility to happen, transport cooperatives need to replace their traditional jeepneys with electric jeepneys. This is, however, challenging to achieve. Using mixed methods (i.e., qualitative interview with 12 transport cooperatives and survey with 77 transport cooperatives), this research identifies the barriers and drivers of e-jeepney adoption and proposes a stage-based model of psychological decision-making consisting of four stages. Despite the limited data sample size, our findings demonstrate the utility of stage-based models and suggest three significant predictors of stage membership and progression. These are (1) belief in the ability to fully comply with the mandatory share of at least five percent (5%) of e-jeepneys in the cooperative’s fleet; (2) feasibility of e-jeepney running on all routes; and (3) proof that it is much cheaper to maintain, run and operate electric jeepney compared to fuel-based jeepney.