Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality, in partnership with ElectReon and Dan Bus Company, has launched a pilot project to install wireless electric roads for charging public transportation in the city.
The pilot, the first of its kind in Israel, will be carried out between Tel Aviv University Railway Station and Klatzkin Terminal in Ramat Aviv – a two-kilometer route including 600 meters of electric road.
The pilot project will enable specially-equipped electric buses, capable of being charged directly from under-road electric infrastructure, to travel on the route. Following the completion of tests and integration of the technology within approximately two months, a Dan Bus Company electric bus will commence regular journeys on the route, serving passengers traveling to Tel Aviv University.
The execution of the pilot project forms part of a municipal policy attaching great importance to electric vehicles and reducing air pollution in the city. This will be carried out by constructing electric roads to encourage energy independent public transportation; placing EV charging stations in public spaces; and adopting innovative initiatives and technologies in various fields, including transportation.
Accordingly, Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality signed a collaboration agreement last week with Israeli company ElectReon, the developer and installer of electric road systems for charging electric vehicles while traveling.
The construction of an electric road to charge public transportation vehicles will make Tel Aviv-Yafo the first city worldwide to roll out the technology for charging buses on a wide scale. In doing so, the city will evaluate the possibility of additional electric transportation, including public transportation, distribution trucks, and private and autonomous vehicles.
Constructing electric roads in Tel Aviv-Yafo will have a major impact, including improving air quality for the benefit of residents and visitors, to introduce an advanced transportation solution to the world and to place the State of Israel as a global leader in the field.
Ron Huldai, Mayor of Tel Aviv-Yafo: “We are constantly working to reduce air pollution in the city, and our strategic action plan to prepare for climate change has placed the fight against pollution at the top of the municipality’s environmental agenda. If the pilot is successful, we will evaluate – together with the Ministry of Transportation – its expansion to additional locations in the city.”
Meital Lehavi, Deputy Mayor for Transportation at Tel Aviv-Yafo Municipality: “We welcome that Tel Aviv-Yafo is a groundbreaking experimental laboratory for Israeli technologies, including electric roads. Transforming a road into an electrified surface and a means for charging, through advanced and effective infrastructure, will enable the acceleration of the transition to electric buses. Relying on direct charging of vehicles from the road itself will remove the need to establish charging stations or be operationally bound to terminals.
“Electric transportation will assist municipal efforts to reduce air pollution and noise, and assist the transition to green modes of transport, which will contribute to improving the quality of life and the environment for residents and visitors to the city. We have no doubt that, if the wide-scale experiment is successful, it will not only benefit the public, but also save resources, improve the operational efficiency of public transportation, and maybe even a new world-class method of electrification will emanate from Tel Aviv-Yafo. This is another milestone in advancing municipal policy on sustainable transportation.”
Oren Ezer, ElectReon CEO and founding partner: “This is a very important step in the implementation of electric road technology, and we are delighted that the first electrified public route is being established in Tel Aviv – a global leader in the field of innovation and smart transportation. We see this project as the first step of a fruitful collaboration with the municipality, Transportation Ministry, Dan and Pandan – the importer of Higer buses to Israel. We thank the Israel Innovation Authority and the Ministry of Energy for their support with this project.
“The pilot will be a display window to the world, showcasing the ability to charge urban public transportation. This is alongside a project in Sweden demonstrating the ability to charge heavy trucks on an intercity road, and a project in Germany that represents the first sale of the technology to a commercial company. We thank the municipality and especially the technical teams who assisted in setting up the project. The project would not have been possible without them.“