New research on renewable energy generation along highways

Why we write about this topic:

We need to get rid of fossil fuels. The demand for renewable energy is increasing. Generating renewable energy along highways can be part of a solution.

The municipalities in the Eindhoven Metropolitan Region and the Province of North Brabant want to investigate how to generate renewable energy along A2, A50 and A58. In doing so, they are responding to the invitation from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate to explore the possibilities of generating energy on state-owned land, says Eindhoven Metropolitan Region in a press release.

If the central government accepts the offer, the research is expected to be completed by the end of 2023. If the outcome is positive, several more years will be needed for concrete planning, citizen participation and decision-making.

Different spots in the Netherlands

With the program, called Opwek Energie op Rijksvastgoed (OER), the central government wants to investigate the possibilities for energy projects on government property in various places in the Netherlands. Eindhoven metropolitan region wants to speed up the process to achieve climate goals and combine the large-scale generation of energy in a smart and creative way.

Broad exploration of opportunities

Alderman Jan Willem Slijper of the municipality of Best is the administrative leader of OER for the Eindhoven Metropolitan Region for the A2, A50 and A58 freeways. “We hope that the government will accept our offer to investigate the generation of sustainable energy along these freeways”, so he stated. “Support from the environment is very important to us. Equally crucial are issues such as fitting into the landscape, costs and road safety.”

First ‘charging highway’ for electric vehicles is coming to Italy

It is undoubtedly the dream of every urban planner and landscape architect: No more electric charging poles and stations, but instead, cars can recharge while driving on the highway.