Daily electricity demand assessment on the example of the Turkish road transport system – a case study of the development of electromobility on highways

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate how the daily electricity demand from road transport related to the implementation of an electric road system on the eight roads with the highest traffic flow connecting the seven largest cities in Turkey varies according to time and location. Intercity highway route O-7, O-5, O-21, D715, D687, E96, and E87 in Western Turkey was used as a case study. The daily electricity demand on the eight roads working on the full electrification of the existing traffic flow can be increased by 3.7% in the case of the reference point. However, if all roads in Turkey are converted to an electric road system and all land vehicles use this system, the corresponding peak power increase will be 100%. The daily electricity demand along the roads is derived from the available measuring points for the daily road traffic volumes. The study also compares the CO₂ reduction potentials and energy demands of the electrified road system with the use of fossil fuels to achieve the same transportation volume. The results show that an electric road system application on eight Turkish roads with considerable traffic flow can reduce 18.8 million tons of CO₂ emissions from the road transport sector. The research can find practical application in assessing the validity of developing a strategy for the development of electromobility on highways in Turkey.