Abstract
Understanding how cities can promote low-carbon travel among tourists is critical for sustainable urban governance. This study analyses low-carbon travel intentions of city tourists in China to develop the low-carbon travel potential (LTP) index which can aid urban policymakers in conceptualizing cities’ potential for low-carbon travel. This LTP index is validated on four types of tourists in 47 Chinese cities. The study finds that cities with high LTP scores are perceived as convenient in the use of shared bicycle, public bus, and rail rapid transit (RRT). Long-staying and high-spending tourists attribute most importance to convenience of RRT; other tourist groups (i.e. long-staying and low-spending, short-staying and high-spending, short-staying and low-spending) value convenience of public buses. The cities’ LTP assessment pinpoints Shenzhen as the top city in terms of LTP among all tourist groups. Changsha has the lowest LTP ranking which calls for urgent measures to strengthen its LTP