Combining urban fleet vehicle operation with reducing energy wastage in light rail systems

Fleet electric vehicles offer excellent potential for vehicle-to-grid operation, as a result of their predictable use patterns. This paper investigates the potential for linking up urban fleet electric vehicles with wasted energy from urban light rail networks. Vehicle-to-grid charging could be deployed to reduce energy wastage from regenerative braking, while serving as temporary energy storage on the light rail system to reduce energy requirements during acceleration and providing an energy supply for fleets of electric vehicles based in urban areas. This paper uses GPS data from real light rail journeys to estimate regenerative braking energy availability for Edinburgh's light rail network. Findings indicate that electric vehicle charging linked to Edinburgh's light rail network would be beneficial for both parties.