Germany
Just Installed Cables Over a Highway to Power Electric Trucks
- May
10, 2019
Those
overhead cables that some cities employ to keep electric trains and buses
running are being used in a new and exciting way. One stretch of German highway
just got a high-tech upgrade, but those big overhead power lines weren’t
installed to power buses or trains—but hybrid trucks!
Earlier this
week, just over six miles of the autobahn welcomed the upgrade in a test that may completely
transform the way we transport goods. It is the first ever test of this type on
a public road in Germany.
The section of
highway that opened with the improvements on Tuesday is an integral part of a
global freight hub, connecting Frankfurt’s airport with an industrial park. Two
more stretches of electrified highway are set to open soon.
“Electrified
trucks are particularly efficient solution on the road to carbon-neutral
transportation,” said State Secretary Rita Schwarzelühr-Sutter at the German
Federal Ministry for the Environment.
German
conglomerate Siemens first developed the eHighway system back in 2012. The
system allows hybrid trucks to charge their batteries via connection to the
overhead cables when they’re traveling at speeds up to 56 mph. A sensor
notifies the driver when its time to switch back to the traditional combustion
engine when, for example, there are no overhead cables available.
SAccording to
Siemens, utilizing the overhead cables will allow for a reduction in carbon
emissions and fuel consumption in areas where railways don’t exist and aren’t
feasible to build. The eHighway system combines the many perks of an electrical
rail system with the flexibility of transporting goods by truck. According to the International Transport
Forum, part of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, “road transportation
of goods will also account for 15% of the projected increase in global CO2
emissions until 2050.”
Germany’s government spent spent $77 million to develop the trucks able to use
the eHighway system. Siemens claims that a single truck owner will save $22,370
on fuel over 62,137 miles.
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