Carbon emissions of urban rail transit in Chinese cities: A comprehensive analysis

Thoroughly exploring carbon emissions within Urban Rail Transit (URT) systems is crucial for effectively reducing emissions while satisfying increasing energy demands. This study evaluated the spatiotemporal characteristics of carbon emissions in China's URT sector. Tapio decoupling and the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index, used to scrutinize decoupling states and identify principal contributing factors, respectively, revealed the following: (1) Total emissions increased by 217 %, with significant spatiotemporal heterogeneity from 2015 to 2022. Type I and Type II cities accounted for >85 % of emissions but exhibited lower carbon intensity. (2) Most URT cities showed expansion-negative decoupling between economic growth and carbon emissions. Developed regions show strong decoupling, and the overall decoupling status improved in 2021–2022. (3) Emissions growth was influenced by energy intensity and economic activity, and transportation intensity was the main inhibitor for Type I cities and a driving force for other cities. Finally, recommendations for carbon emission reduction in the URT industry are proposed. [Display omitted] •CO2 emissions from all Chines URT cities were classified and evaluated first.•Spatiotemporal heterogeneity was found in the URT CO2 emissions of China.•Type I cities had the highest CO2 emissions but the lowest CO2 emission intensity.•Most subway cities were found with expansion negative decoupling status.•Energy intensity and economy were the main drivers of URT CO2 emissions.