Can hydrogen fuel cell vehicles drive the future of sustainable transportation? An empirical study

Purpose - Around the world, people are turning to sustainable solutions to stop environmental destruction. Among its many solutions to environmental degradation and sustainability are hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (HFCVs). However, this area remains not much explored in the Indian context. Therefore, this study aims to explore the factors influencing the intention to adopt HFCVs, particularly within the Indian context. Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected through a questionnaire employing a five-point Likert scale. A total of 310 responses were received, but only 273 were included in the final analysis. Furthermore, the analysis was conducted using “partial least squares structural equation modeling” with SmartPLS 4 software. Findings - The results revealed that among six attitudinal variables, four of them, i.e. high initial cost (IC), limited driving range (LDR), reliability and environmental awareness, have a significant impact on shaping the attitude of consumers. However, technological innovation (TI) and perceived long-term cost savings do not significantly impact attitude. Additionally, the result also revealed that subjective norm, attitude and perceived behavior control have a significant positive effect on adoption intention towards HFCVs, theorizing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Research limitations/implications - Just like other studies, this study is not free from limitations. The first limitation pertains to the generalizability issue since this study has been conducted in the Indian context. Therefore, future researchers should replicate the same proposed model in other countries and contexts in order to understand the adoption of e-vehicles. Secondly, the study majorly focuses on attitudinal factors without having included the external factors that can significantly impact the adoption intention. Future studies are recommended to take into account external factors such as government schemes and policies that have the capability of enhancing the adoption rates. This would facilitate having a comprehensive understanding. Third, pertaining to the constraints of research methodology, the data have been collected at a single point of time; hence, longitudinal research design should be adopted in the future in order to understand the trends and movements. Practical implications - The study provides valuable insights for businesses and governments aiming to cater towards sustainability. Businesses engaged in developing HFCVs can use this model in order to understand the factors influencing the adoption intention and work towards addressing the concerns of high IC, LDR and promoting long-term cost savings and environmental benefits. Such insights can become a base for developing the marketing campaigns that aim at positively influencing the consumer attitudes, thereby increasing the adoption rates. Furthermore, government and policymakers can use this model to further advance the policies, introduce incentives, provide subsidies, invest in infrastructure to support HFCV adoption and build an efficient HFCV ecosystem. Social implications - There are several theoretical implications of this study that will enrich the existing knowledge on HFCV adoption intention. Firstly, the study used TPB, which has been built as a psychological framework to predict and understand human behavior. Hence, using TPB in this study would facilitate to predict and understand the intention of consumers towards adoption of HFCVs. Secondly, six attitudinal variables have been incorporated in this study, namely TI, high IC, LDR, reliability, environmental awareness and perceived long-term cost savings, along with 2 more independent variables, i.e. subjective norms and perceived control behavior. All these factors have been tested empirically as well as reported, which will further help in enhancing the insights about HFCV adoption. Therefore, a holistic and comprehensive view has been presented by the analyzing the factors in this study and growing the literature pertaining to HFCV adoption. Originality/value - The novelty of this research lies in understanding the role of attitudinal factors by extending the TPB. Additionally, the study aims to investigate future intentions regarding the intention to adopt HFCVs in the Indian context.