Sustainable Cycling: Boosting Commuting and Tourism Opportunities in Istria

Aleksandar Šobot, Sergej Gričar (), Violeta Šugar and Štefan Bojnec
Additional contact information
Aleksandar Šobot: Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, University of Novo Mesto, Na Loko 2, 8000 Novo Mesto, Slovenia
Sergej Gričar: Faculty of Business and Management Sciences, University of Novo Mesto, Na Loko 2, 8000 Novo Mesto, Slovenia
Violeta Šugar: Faculty of Economics and Tourism Dr. Mijo Mirković, Juraj Dobrila University in Pula, Petra Preradovića 1, 52100 Pula, Croatia
Štefan Bojnec: Faculty of Management, University of Primorska, Izolska Vrata 2, 6000 Koper, Slovenia

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 23, 1-23

Abstract: This study explores the evolution of cycling in Istria, a region located in parts of Slovenia and Croatia along the Northern Adriatic coast, recognised for its vibrant tourism sector. The research aims to evaluate the potential of cycling for both daily commuting and tourism while examining its economic, environmental, and social impacts. The study uses secondary data from 2010 to 2023, econometric methods, and interviews to assess how cycling contributes to economic growth, regional collaboration, employment rates, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In Slovenia, regression analysis indicates that bicycle imports positively correlate with tourist arrivals, which positively influences GDP. However, VAR analysis shows that employment has a negative impact on GHG emissions. In contrast, the increase in bicycles contributes to higher GHG emissions, suggesting the possibility of greenwashing or double pollution. In Croatia, regression coefficients were found to be insignificant, aligning with insights gained from interviews. Nonetheless, VAR analysis reveals that tourist arrivals and GDP positively reinforce each other, while GHG emissions negatively affect employment. Bicycles are shown to reduce GHG emissions, and tourist arrivals are also associated with lowered GHG emissions. The study concludes that cycling holds significant potential for fostering sustainable tourism and regional development; however, the differing impacts observed in Slovenia and Croatia necessitate tailored policy interventions. The hypothesis is partially confirmed in Slovenia, where bicycle imports positively impact tourist arrivals and GDP but are challenged by increased GHG emissions, while in Croatia, the hypothesis is not supported by direct economic gains from cycling. However, bicycles contribute to reducing GHG emissions.

Keywords: cycling; European Union border policies; GHG; economic development; Istria (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/23/10604/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/23/10604/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:23:p:10604-:d:1535988

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().