World's first dynamic induction charging highway: road tests in real traffic conditions are very promising
Conducted on the A10 motorway in France, around 40 kilometers southwest of Paris, by a consortium led by VINCI Autoroutes, in collaboration with Electreon, VINCI Construction, Gustave Eiffel University, and Hutchinson, the “Charge as you drive” project (”Charge while driving") project consists of deploying, for the first time anywhere in the world, a dynamic induction charging system on a motorway under real traffic conditions. This system enables electric trucks, as well as all types of electric vehicles equipped with receivers, to recharge directly while driving.
This experiment embodies the vision of VINCI Concessions: rethinking infrastructure to accelerate the transition to mobility that serves everyone and is more sustainable, safer, efficient, and innovative.
Deployed on a large scale, this solution would significantly reduce the size of vehicle batteries, thereby improving the overall performance of heavy electric mobility, both from an operational standpoint (cheaper and lighter vehicles with improved fuel consumption and payload, elimination of downtime for recharging, etc.) and from an environmental perspective (reduced need for raw materials and lower carbon footprint associated with battery manufacturing) .
After laboratory tests to prequalify the materials, mechanical durability tests on a closed site, and then the installation of induction coils on 1.5 km of the A10 motorway, the project is now entering a new phase with prototype vehicles ( a truck, a utility vehicle, a car and a bus) being tested on the motorway.
At VINCI Concessions, innovation is central to our ambition to develop more sustainable mobility. By rethinking infrastructure to make it smarter and more connected, this approach helps accelerate the decarbonization of transport and develop concrete solutions to major environmental challenges.
"The initial results of the ongoing trial on a section of the A10 motorway confirm the findings of previous studies. The deployment of this technology on France's main roads, in addition to charging stations, would further accelerate the electrification of heavy-duty vehicles and thus reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the freight transport and logistics sector, which alone accounts for more than 16% of the country's greenhouse gas emissions," said Nicolas Notebaert, Chief Executive Officer of Concessions at VINCI, President of VINCI Autoroutes.
