Sweden: EVolution Road charges Solaris buses
As part of the ‘EVolution Road’ research project initiated by Elonroad with the University of Lund and Sweden’s transport ministry, a track is being built that will enable EV batteries to be charged both while driving and when stationary.
A Solaris Trollino trolleybus from Solaris has been selected for the project. For the test drives, a specially developed device will be installed under the bus for charging from a rail that is embedded in the ground. The test road will be built in the city of Lund in the south of Sweden. Segments of conductor rails, each one meter long, will be laid over a distance of one kilometre. The Polish bus and coach manufacturer is responsible for the development and integration of the charging systems in the bus.
The EVolution Road will be able to identify approaching electric vehicles. Only then will the power supply be switched on in the sections of the rail immediately under the vehicle. The energy can only be supplied by one segment of the bus bar to which the current collector in the vehicle is connected. In all other segments of the busbar, which are located in front of or behind the moving vehicles, the power supply is switched off. This concept should be able to be safely installed both in city streets and along motorways.
The installation of conductor rails involves minimal disruption to existing urban infrastructure. Neither masts nor overhead lines are needed for the project, needless to say, protection devices for pantographs are also not required.
Construction of the test track is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2020. The entire project is scheduled to run for three years. The total value of the investment is 9 million euros. In addition to Solaris, partners in this project include the Faculty of Engineering at Lund University, the Swedish National Research Institute for Roads and Transport, the municipality of Lund, Elonroad, Innovation Skåne AB, Kraftringen Energi AB, Ramboll AB and Skånetrafiken.
Last year Solaris delivered 107 electric buses to customers across Europe. According to the Polish-Spanish bus manufacturer, it held a market share of 17% of all-electric bus sales in Europe in 2018.
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