ELECTRIC VEHICLES COULD CHARGE UP ON THE ROAD WITH ‘E-LANES’

Electric cars will be charged wirelessly while on the move in an initiative designed to revolutionise transport in the UK.

Public ‘E-lanes’ containing wireless chargers could revolutionise electric transport, especially on longer journeys, as they could remove the need for drivers to stop every 100 to 250 miles, find a charging station and wait – potentially for several hours – while their battery tops up.

Coventry is to be the first city to trial such a scheme, installing charging facilities onto a stretch of road in the north east of the city.

It will, if successful, pave the way for electric vehicle use to become widespread across the UK and beyond within 10 years, experts say.

“Charging batteries on the move is key to the success of electric vehicles in the UK, not least because it will take away the anxiety many people feel about finding a charging station before it’s too late,” said project leader Shamala Evans, of Coventry city council.

If the scheme is successful Coventry’s authorities will ‘electrify’ more of its roads, followed closely by other towns and cities.

Once charging lanes became widespread, battery sizes could be significantly reduced because they wouldn’t need to hold as much electricity.

“Batteries are large, heavy and expensive – so a smaller battery makes the car lighter. That means it uses less energy, and creates space so it can carry more passengers or cargo,” said Noam Ilan, who is working with Coventry council on the city’s proposed electric lane.

E-lanes will also smooth the way for driverless vehicles to becoming widespread, especially those designed to transport elderly, disabled or very young passengers who cannot drive and would find it difficult to locate and use a charging station.

An influx of vehicles on the road if autonomous vehicles do take off would put even more pressure on roadside charging stations, further increasing the need for on-the-road-charging facilities, according to Professor Mohammad Reza Mousavi, of the University of Leicester.

“Autonomous vehicles could, for example, allow you to send your kid to school without you being involved, so you can drive somewhere else. But you would need ‘inductive charging’ for them to become widely used,” he said.