Test operations for the E-Highway Schleswig-Holstein on Autobahn 1 between Reinfeld and Lübeck have been running since the end of 2019.

Four trucks from a Reinfeld forwarding company equipped with pantographs are meanwhile commuting along the five-kilometre test route.

The balance so far has been mostly positive, said a spokeswoman for the research and development center at Kiel University of Applied Sciences, which is scientifically accompanying the "E-Highway Schleswig-Holstein (FESH) field test".

According to the information, the first truck in the country with the name "El Lennon" covered around 6,000 kilometers under the overhead line in 2021, drawing around 4,200 kilowatt hours for the electric drive and charging the vehicle batteries, said the spokeswoman.

According to the information, a final assessment should be made after the end of the field test at the end of 2022.

Of the 6,000 kilometers under the overhead line, the trucks cover around 3,900 kilometers with pantographs attached.

"The difference is mainly due to the fact that the vehicle can only raise its pantograph below the overhead line and has to pull it in again in good time at the end of the route," said the spokeswoman.

The Ministry of the Environment bears the costs

The section in Schleswig-Holstein is one of three test routes nationwide that are used to examine the suitability of an overhead contact line system for the electrification of heavy commercial vehicles in real traffic.

The other test tracks are in Hesse and Baden-Württemberg.

The Federal Ministry for the Environment bears the costs of 19 million euros.

"All overhead line trucks have data loggers that record values ​​such as speed and power consumption," explained the spokeswoman.

In Schleswig-Holstein in particular, data on the effects on the climate, air quality, noise protection, resource consumption and nature conservation are also being examined.

Possible network disturbances from the substations and the wind downforce of the chain suspensions are also being examined.

"But it's still too early for an overall ecological assessment," she said.

The field trial is also being followed closely internationally.

"In Great Britain there are plans for a 30-kilometer test route for overhead line trucks based on the German model," said a spokesman for the federal Autobahn GmbH.

The technology is also being followed closely in Austria.

The spokesman said there had already been an intensive exchange with delegations from France, Italy, Hungary and India.