eHighway project kicks off in Germany

Tomorrow, the eHighway project Elisa (electrified, innovative heavy traffic on the autobahn) will start on a section of the A5 highway between Langen and Weiterstadt. For the first time on a German motorway, hybrid trucks will be powered via overhead lines.

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The eHighway is now being tested in real traffic by five logistics companies with their trucks on one of the busiest stretches of motorway in Germany; near the Frankfurt Airport and the Frankfurter Kreuz intersection. The aim is to collect data that could be relevant for a potential expansion of the system.

A total of three eHighway projects have been announced nationwide: In addition to the German states of Hessen and Schleswig-Holstein, Baden-Württemberg will also be launching a test track. The three projects are in very different stages of progress: The overhead line system on the Hessian A5 between Langen/Mörfelden and Weiterstadt was already completed at the end of November, and since then, the first tests of the Hessian state authority have been taking place on a mobile basis. In contrast, construction for the A1 in Schleswig-Holstein near Lübeckthe is only expected to be completed in the course of this year, while in the state of Baden-Württemberg, the invitation to tender for the installation of the eHighway on the B 462 in the Murgtal valley was only published half a year ago.

The Ministry of the Environment is spending a total of almost 50 million euros on the three test sections, including almost 15 million euros for the section on the A5. In December, the Ministry commissioned Scania to supply hybrid trucks with pantographs. The pantographs will be supplied by Siemens. The 15 R 450 models ordered are to be used at all three locations. The German suppliers have been quite active lately in the area of industrial charging applications, even going so far as putting pressure on EU politicians to make changes more quickly.

Update 18.06.2019: Since the 22 May 2019, the Hans Adam Schanz haulage company from Ober-Ramstadt in Germany has added a catenary truck in its fleet. Several times a day, the driver transports his freight from the Odenwald to Frankfurt-Ost with the Scania R 450 Hybrid and also uses the overhead line of the A5 test track – with initial results. As Scania now reports, after the first 1,000 kilometres evaluated, diesel fuel savings of around ten per cent were achieved.

The commercial vehicle manufacturer Scania is the exclusive supplier for this field test financed by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment. In the coming months, four more hybrid trucks will be delivered for the pilot project in the German state of Hesse.

automobilwoche.de, heise.de, scania.com (Update in German)