The world’s first electric highway was opened in Gävle, central Sweden yesterday, and it was an electrically-powered G 360 4 x 2 truck from Scania which made the inaugural journey.
Sweden’s commitment to sustainable transport
Swedish Government Ministers, leading public sector figures, the business community and the regional authority where the electric road is located were joined by international media and members at the launch. The technology is the result of several years of cooperation between the Swedish Government, public sector and private sector, and shows the strength of Sweden’s commitment to sustainable transport solutions.
Scania and Siemens’ joint technology
Claes Erixon, Scania’s Head of Research and Development, described how the Scania truck has been equipped with a pantograph power collector that is mounted on the frame behind its cab. This connects in turn to overhead power lines that are above the right-hand lane of the road, using conductive technology created by Siemens.
The truck can freely connect to and disconnect from the overhead wires while in motion, operating as electric vehicles when on the electrified road and as regular hybrid vehicles at other times. All the Scania trucks that will be on the road are hybrid and Euro 6-certified, running on biofuel.
The new technology has been pioneered by Scania and Siemens, with the backing of various Swedish private and public sector bodies including the Swedish Transport Administration, Gävleborg Regional Authority, the Swedish Energy Agency Authority and Vinnova.
Good for the environment, good for growth and good for jobs
The launch was attended by two Government Ministers, Anna Johansson, Swedish Minister for Infrastructure and Ibrahim Baylan, Minister for Energy, as well as Lena Erixon, Director General Swedish Traffic Administration and Erik Brandsma, Director General Swedish Energy Agency . Both the Ministers were very impressed with the technology, hailing it as good for the environment, good for growth and good for Swedish jobs.
And, as you’ll hear in our film of the event, Ibrahim Baylan had particular praise for Scania’s role, describing the company as being at the “forefront” of efforts to promote sustainable transport solutions.
