Alternate Solution for EV Charge Point Infrastructure in Crowded Urban Areas along the Shore

Many countries including India have aggressively aimed to implement electric vehicles (EVs) usage from 2030 onwards. Companies such as General Motors, Uber, Waymo and Nissan etc. are exploring the realm of autonomous vehicles (AV) for use as taxis as early as 2019. Above facts logically arrive at the solution of Autonomous EVs as taxis. With the commitment towards enabling an all-electric future, there exists a need to provide suitable infrastructure for recharging. Major urban cities located by the shoreline such as New York, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Los Angeles etc. have been facing the space crunch, with real estate prices sky-rocketing exponentially. With this premise, the operating company would need a large amount of space to store their EVs for charging which attributes to a longer downtime. This brings a need for an economical charging location that has a reduced usage of urban infrastructure and energy consumption. This study explores the possibility of an alternate charging location for electric AV ride sharing fleet charging with “e-Barge”, a barge dedicated to charge EV vehicles onboard with self-generated power from renewable energy sources. The concept of using a barge has been proposed due to the various benefits offered for storage and renewable energy utilization while occupying zero land space. The standard barge of 195ft x 35ft can accommodate approximately 22 taxis sized 14ft x 6ft on one level which can all be charged simultaneously. The e-Barge is designed to load EVs, charge vehicles on its multiple floors on-the-go, travel to a different port in the city and unload the autonomous EVs based on demand. The proximity of the barge to downtown area increases availability of charged vehicles ready for use. A floating system of autonomous EV charging is hence seen as a viable solution for economic ride sharing fleet ownership in urban areas along the shore.