Charged EVs | Belgian transit company De Lijn invests in clever charging and depot administration software program

De Lijn, a public transport company that serves the Flanders area of Belgium, operates a fleet of round 2,240 buses and 399 trams. The corporate plans to supply emission-free public transport by 2035, which implies that roughly 2,100 buses and greater than 50 depots have to be up to date.

De Lijn not too long ago put in an built-in depot and charging administration system to regulate the charging of its electrical buses. The worth of the contract is roughly €11 million.

The worth of electrical energy in Europe has enormously elevated prior to now 12 months, highlighting the significance of optimizing the charging of e-buses. Sooner or later, De Lijn’s power prices can be topic to time-of-use pricing. The e-buses could be charged at their depots at evening, when electrical energy prices are decrease. “Actually on the bigger depots, the place greater than 100 e-buses are charged day-after-day, it’s inconceivable to effectively handle the charging course of manually,” says the corporate.

Going inexperienced includes “extra than simply shopping for e-buses,” mentioned Flemish Minister of Mobility and Public Works Lydia Peeters (translated from the Flemish). “The software program…is simply as essential [and] is a vital hyperlink to make sure that the e-buses run easily and are charged on the e-depots. On the finish of the day, the system determines which job every bus can be assigned the next day. Relying on this each day job, the buses are guided to their appropriate positions within the depot, in order that they’ll depart on the proper time within the morning.”

The Depot+ system schedules your entire charging course of on the premise of every bus’s state of cost to make sure that it will get charged as cost-effectively as doable to have the ability to deal with its subsequent day’s work. The automated charging course of begins as quickly as the motive force connects the CCS2 plug.

“With [software provider] PSI eBus for De Lijn, we’re bringing in a provider who can depend on intensive expertise with different Western European public transport corporations,” says Ann Schoubs, Director-Normal of De Lijn. “It’s hanging how properly this software can anticipate sudden conditions. At De Lijn, the traveler is central. For an e-bus, it begins within the morning, when the bus can depart precisely on time and with the precise battery cost.”

Supply: De Lijn