Between Kungsgarden and Sandviken, Sweden is opening the electric highway, called eHighway. It operates using the same system as the tram electric installation, which has been known for 120 years. The idea is now used for the first time for the supply of heavy trucks on a public road at high speeds. The length of the test lane is 2 kilometers (almost 1,25 miles).

Siemens eHighway for diesel-electric hybrid trucks

Heavy truck brand Scania installed pantograph, mounted on the frame of the driver’s cab, linked to a regular hybrid propulsion system of the truck. Pantograph delivers electric power to the hybrid drive system of the vehicle. A truck can be connected to the electrical wiring above the road up to a speed of 90 km/h. When the truck leaves the electric highway or need to overtake or avoid any object in its path, it continues the drive as a diesel-electric hybrid.

Conductive electrical transmission

Pantographs are otherwise powered from the conduct above the driving lane. The lane is separated from the other lanes with a fence. Wires are hung on the columns at a distance of 60 meters. At a rest area along the highway, they arranged a power supply station. In the future it will operate completely automatically, but for now it is monitored by the technician. At least for a trial period probably. They also built a demonstration lap, on which drivers will be demonstrated how the pantograph equipped trucks work.

Fossil fuel emissions reduced by 80 to 90 percent

The project is released under the orders of Swedish ministries of transport and energy, and VINNOVA government agencies for the development . Their goal is to report on the credibility of the conversion of heavy road freight transport. The purpose is obviously to achieve environmentally sustainable electric propulsion. As a result, the fossil fuel emissions reduction is estimated to be somewhere between 80 and 90 percent. And furthermore, energy consumption by half. The aforementioned road section is one of two pilot projects, through which they will evaluate two technologies for the electrification of the highway. In the demonstration period between June 2016 and December 2018, two different hybrid trucks will demonstrate and test the functioning of the system.

Image and video credit: Scania