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DSV data to electrify road freight

[ February 28, 2023   //   ]

DSV is participating in a project that might one day make it possible for electric trucks to recharge while driving, using an overhead contact line. The Danish-owned forwarder is taking part in the ELISA eHighway scheme in Frankfurt, Germany to test the concept.

Overhead electric wires will give on on-the-go charging and make electric trucks a feasible long distance freight mode, it says. DSV is supplying data for the project as part of its aim to lower its indirect emissions by 30% by 2030 and reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

DSV Roadchief executiveSøren Schmidt said that without the right levels of infrastructure, there is a danger that charging stations will be “the Suez Canal” of road transport, the cause of significant delays and congestion for electric vehicles.

Through the ELISA eHighway project, project partners will work to establish an electric highway that allows for easy on-the-go charging of electric vehicles, eliminating downtime spent on charging and eventually enabling a transition to electric long-distance trucks. Trucks driving on eHighway test tracks are equipped with roof sensors that detect an overhead contact line above the truck, which then connects to the line through a pantograph and charges while driving.

DSV is collaborating with researchers from the Institute of Transport Planning and Traffic Engineering at the Technical University of Darmstadt who are collecting and analysing data to evaluate the development of the eHighway.

Since the beginning of February, a subcontracted DSV driver has been using the 10, soon to be 17, kilometre eHighway test track in Frankfurt, transporting customers’ goods to and from Frankfurt Airport. Through a data logger in the truck, data concerning more than 150 parameters such as battery charging state and fuel rate is sent to researchers from the Institute of Transport Planning and Traffic Engineering at the Technical University of Darmstadt. Additionally, the researchers conduct weekly evaluation interviews with the driver.

In addition to the track in Frankfurt, the project includes test tracks in the German cities of Stuttgart and Lübeck. Project partners are applying for funding for a potential next phase, allowing for further development of the eHighway.

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