Skip to main content

Germany accelerates implementation of emobility infrastructure

While global sales of German autos are buoyant, significant efforts are underway to expand the emobility infrastructure in Germany. Several projects now support the implementation of alternative drivetrain concepts. Four new model regions were recently selected by the federal government. In total they will be granted up to US$235 million to implement pilot and demonstration projects to showcase cutting-edge technology.
May 8, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
While global sales of German autos are buoyant, significant efforts are underway to expand the emobility infrastructure in Germany. Several projects now support the implementation of alternative drivetrain concepts. Four new model regions were recently selected by the federal government. In total they will be granted up to US$235 million to implement pilot and demonstration projects to showcase cutting-edge technology.

"From suppliers to manufacturers to researchers, Germany's automotive industry is drawing companies from all over the world. Not only can businesses serve the largest market in Europe, they can also gain a first-mover advantage in areas like emobility and fuel efficiency, while finding an excellent infrastructure," said Emilio Brahmst, automotive industry expert at Germany Trade & Invest, the foreign trade and inward investment promotion agency of the Federal Republic of Germany

The education system in Germany also supports new developments in the auto sector. Universities, research institutes and companies work together on the latest innovations. At the same time, the so-called dual education system emphasises trades that are critical to the sector. The city of Hanover, for example, launched an apprentice programme last month to teach its 1,260 students alternative drivetrain technologies.

"The auto industry is the hallmark of German innovation. Nearly 40 per cent of companies conducting research in Germany are from the USA, many of them in this sector. In the current environment, we see excellent opportunities for companies to invest," said Brahmst.

Related Content

  • Redflex enforces commitment to ethics
    May 29, 2013
    Redflex has introduced stringent ethical and procedural requirements following an investigation into corruption in Chicago. Like the Phoenix, which also happens to be the name of the company’s home city, Redflex Traffic Systems has been reborn. Following a headline-making public relations debacle late last year, Redflex has reinvented itself, establishing a series of stringent policies and procedures to ensure ethical business conduct, while continuing to deliver the traffic safety technology and services t
  • Development of cooperative driving applications for work zones
    July 17, 2012
    The German AKTIV project is researching several cooperative driving applications for use in work zones. PTV's Michael Ortgiese details progress. The steep increases in traffic volumes predicted back in the early 1990s have unfortunately been proven to be more than accurate. In Germany, the AKTIV project continues to look into cooperative technologies' potential to reduce the impact of those increased traffic volumes and keep traffic moving despite limitations in infrastructure capacity.
  • Transport technology transforming bus stops in Los Angeles
    January 20, 2012
    David Crawford reports on a pioneering blend of transport technology and aesthetic By gaining a design award before installation has even started, the US$6.9 million City of Santa Monica (California)'s Big Blue Bus Shelter and Branding Package has ensured early interest among what it expects to be a new wave of transit riders. The American Institute of Architects' Los Angeles chapter's recently conferred 'Next LA Citation Award for Architecture', given for design excellence in projects as yet unbuilt, comm
  • European Truck Platooning Challenge winds up at Intertraffic
    March 2, 2016
    As holder of the EU Presidency in 2016, the Netherlands has organised the 2016 European Truck Platooning Challenge and it is no coincidence that it will involve Intertraffic Amsterdam. Truck platooning, where two or more trucks travel in convoy very close to each other, provides many benefits. The first truck does the driving while the ones following are connected by a wireless electronic communications system, like the carriages of a train.