25th September 2021 Electrified road to wirelessly charge EVs in Michigan Michigan will become the first state in America to deploy inductive vehicle charging technology in roads, in an effort to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). Governor of Michigan, Gretchen Whitmer, made the announcement during the opening ceremony of the Motor Bella auto show on Tuesday. The Inductive Vehicle Charging Pilot is a partnership between Michigan's Department of Transportation (MDOT) and the Office of Future Mobility and Electrification (OFME). It will deploy an electrified roadway system allowing electric cars, buses, shuttles and other vehicles to charge while driving, allowing them to operate continuously without stopping to charge. This will address range anxiety, while turning public roads into safe, sustainable, shared energy platforms. "Michigan was home to the first mile of paved road, and now we're paving the way for the roads of tomorrow with innovative infrastructure that will support the economy and the environment, helping us achieve our goal of carbon neutrality by 2050," said Governor Whitmer. "This project reinforces my commitment to accelerating the deployment of electric vehicle infrastructure in Michigan and will create new opportunities for businesses and high-tech jobs amidst the transition to electric vehicles."
The MDOT is seeking a partner to design, fund, evaluate, iterate, test and implement the Inductive Vehicle Charging Pilot along a one-mile stretch of state-operated roadway in Wayne, Oakland or Macomb counties. The agency will publish a Request for Proposal on Tuesday 28th September. "At MDOT, we know the future of mobility involves connectivity, and this initiative dovetails nicely with our other successes linking vehicles and infrastructure through technology," said Paul C. Ajegba, Director of the MDOT. "This is a model we will build on across the state to further promote the governor's broad and ambitious vision." "We're in the midst of the most significant shift in the automotive industry since the Model T rolled off the assembly line more than a century ago, and Michigan is once again setting the course for manufacturing the vehicles of the future, and deploying charging solutions that make EV adoption more widely available" said Trevor Pawl, Chief Mobility Officer with the OFME. "This electrified roadway has the potential to accelerate autonomous vehicles at scale and turn our streets into safe, sustainable, accessible and shared transportation platforms." This follows a string of related announcements by the Michigan administration in the past month – including a first round of new grants to accelerate mobility and EV investments in the state; a robot delivery program for last-mile deliveries being piloted near Detroit's city centre; and the Detroit Smart Parking Lab, a new public/private sector collaboration for testing automated valet parking and EV charging technology. "We're rebuilding infrastructure in Michigan. Orange barrels are everywhere. It's important that we're rebuilding, but we're doing it in a resilient way that supports advanced technology," Whitmer told reporters. Worldwide, the wireless electric vehicle charging market is projected to reach $210 million by 2030, a CAGR of 36.4% from 2020 to 2030, according to a report by Allied Market Research.
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