The country will get the first electric highway 200 km long, know-how vehicles move on it? And how will you benefit from it?

Posted on 21st Sep 2021 by rohit kumar

Soon the country may get the first electric highway. The government is preparing to build an electric highway between Delhi and Jaipur. Union Road Minister Nitin Gadkari announced this recently in Dausa, Rajasthan. All-electric vehicles will ply on this highway. This will also save money and reduce pollution. This announcement of the Union Minister is being considered as a big step in the path of promoting electric vehicles in the country.

 

First of all, understand what is an electric highway?

 

Understand in simple language, such a highway on which electric vehicles ply. You must have seen an electric wire on the top of the train. This wire is connected to the train engine through an arm, from which the entire train gets electricity. Similarly, electric wires will also be installed on the highway. Vehicles plying on the highway will get electricity from these wires. This is called the e-highway, that is, the electric highway. There will also be charging points at a distance for charging electric vehicles on this highway.

 

Where is it being built?

 

Nitin Gadkari has announced that the country's first e-highway will be built between Delhi and Jaipur. This 200-km-long highway will be built on a new lane along with the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway. This lane will be completely electric and only electric vehicles will ply in it. The government is talking to Swedish companies about this. This will be the country's first e-highway once it is fully ready.

 

What are the benefits of e-highway to you?

 

The biggest feature of e-highway is the cheap movement of vehicles in them. Nitin Gadkari had said that the e-highway will reduce the logistics cost by 70%. At present, a major reason for the increase in the prices of things is the transportation cost. If transportation costs come down, things can become cheaper.

 

These will be completely eco-friendly. Electricity will be used to run vehicles, which will be cheaper than petrol and diesel and will also be less harmful to the environment.

 

Dependence on petrol and diesel will be reduced. Transportation cost has also increased due to expensive petrol and diesel. In addition, petrol and diesel are also harmful to the environment.

 

How do electric highways work?

 

There are three different types of technology used for e-highway across the world. The Indian government is talking to Swedish companies, so it is believed that the technology being used in Sweden will be the same in India.

 

The pantograph model is used in Sweden, which is also used in trains in India. In this, a wire is placed over the road, in which electricity flows. This electricity is supplied to the vehicle through a pantograph. This electricity directly powers the engine or charges the battery in the vehicle.

 

Apart from this, conduction and induction models are also used. In the conduction model, the wire is installed inside the road, on which the pantograph moves while colliding.

 

The third model is the induction model. There is no wire in it. Electricity is supplied to the vehicle using an electromagnetic current.

 

The electric vehicles used in Sweden and Germany have a hybrid engine, that is, they can run on electricity as well as petrol and diesel.

 

Can personal vehicles like car-jeeps also be driven on the e-highway?

 

In countries like Sweden, Germany, they are used only for logistics transport. Personal vehicles like cars, jeeps run on electricity, but they are operated with batteries. Direct supply is provided only in trucks and vehicles used for public transport. If your vehicle is electric, you will be able to use this highway. For your convenience, there will be a charging station at every short distance, where you can charge your vehicle.

 

What are the challenges in this path? understand that too

 

The biggest challenge is to develop infrastructure. The cost of building an electric highway is higher than that of a common road. Also, in the beginning, it is a big challenge to build such a network of highways across the country. This work is very expensive and it also takes a lot of time.

 

Merely building an electric highway is not enough. Electric vehicles should also be there to run on them. It may take years to replace petrol-diesel-powered vehicles with electric vehicles.

 

Making batteries for electric vehicles is a complex task in itself. Many dangerous chemicals are released during this process. Even after use, it is harmful to the environment. Environmental activists have raised this issue many times. Also, the batteries in the vehicle are expensive.

 

Which other countries of the world have e-highway?

 

Electric highways are being used in Sweden and Germany. Sweden is the first country in the world to introduce an e-highway. Sweden began trials of the e-highway in 2016 and the first e-highway in 2018.

 

After Sweden, Germany introduced the electric highway in 2019. This highway is 6 miles long. Apart from this highway, Germany has also built a wireless electric road for buses. Separate projects are underway to promote electric vehicles in public transport in Sweden and Germany. Work on e-highway is also going on in Britain and America.