The Electric Highway: An Innovative Approach to Reducing CO2 Emissions from Freight Transport

Download the results of the Carbone 4 study

In the future, the development of low-carbon transportation solutions cannot overlook road freight transport. While it is possible to envision carbon-free electricity for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, the full electrification of heavy-duty trucks is more challenging due to the significant weight and cost of batteries. That is why Carbone 4 has explored an innovative option that requires only a small amount of on-board electricity storage in trucks: electric highways. The principle is simple:

• on the one hand, equipping highways with electricity distribution systems (using overhead wires, or ground-based charging systems using rails or induction);
• On the other hand, equipping heavy-duty trucks with power-taking-in systems and electric motors (in addition to their diesel engines).

Such a solution is currently being studied by several companies (such as SIEMENS and ALSTOM) and in several countries (Germany, Sweden, the United States, and France). It has the advantage of reduce the environmental impact of road freight transport while optimizing the use of existing transportation infrastructure. Furthermore, its implementation would require only minor operational adjustments on the part of carriers. For a consortium of major players in the energy and road freight sectors, Carbone 4 assessed the economic and environmental benefits of this innovation, outlining the conditions for its success for its deployment.

  An electric highway would be profitable under current economic conditions on heavily trafficked routes, provided that hybrid vehicles are restricted to electrified routes. A a more ambitious rollout on a section equivalent to one-third of the highway network would make it possible to significant improvements in the trade balance as well assignificant reductions in CO2 emissions. However, such a deployment could not take place without a moderate public support relative to the CO2 emissions avoided, of around 100 € per metric ton of CO2. It is a level of relatively low cost compared to other public policies on climate change, especially in the transportation sector where other decarbonization approaches are considerably more expensive. In fact, the Court of Auditors recently examined tax expenditures aimed at promoting sustainable development. It appears that many of these measures are net contributors to greenhouse gas emissions and cost several hundred—or even thousands—of euros per unit of CO2 emitted! Conducted conservatively given current oil prices, Carbone 4’s study on the electric highway highlights the benefits of this solution for significantly decarbonize the road transport sector in the short term, while ensuring economic efficiency. Furthermore, if the price per barrel rises above $80 in the coming years, as is very likely, Electric highway projects are therefore self-sustaining. Anticipating this rise in oil prices by rolling out electric highways is therefore a way to protect carriers from rising diesel prices.

For all these reasons, the electric highway deserves the full attention of public authorities, and some ideas for support are provided in The Carbone 4 report is available for download.

See also the press releases from Geodis and ATMB on their website.

What the press is saying...

See the June 1 article on the website ofEconomic Alternatives

See the May 4 article in In Short: Eco

Watch the ATMB interview on theEnvironment News

See the March 23 article on the website of The Dauphiné

See the March 24 article on the website of Supply Chain Magazine

See the April 3 article on the website of Avere France

See the March 25 article on the website of Logistics Strategies

See the March 23 article on the website of Voxlog

See the March 22 article on the website of The Extension

See the March 23 article on the website of Cayola Construction

See the article by the IDRRM (Institute for Streets, Roads, and Mobility Infrastructure) on their website

See the March 25 article on the website of Clean Cars

See the article in the BTP newspaper on their website

See the Info Autoroute article on their website