In the UK, a self-powered solar powered train project

The British railway company South Western Railway will soon deploy a new project signed Riding Sunbeams: power trains with solar panels. 

At a time when the zero-emission target is growing, the UK is wasting no time!

An operational project from August

The electricity produced by solar energy will never enter the electricity grid. It will go directly to the railway, where it will be converted into traction power to feed trains: this is, in a few words, the project hosted by the British company South Western Railway, which should see the light of day in a few weeks. 

If solar trains already exist, the novelty lies here in the use of solar panels. Indeed, the existing solar trains operate thanks to panels fixed on their roofs. The English project plans to place 135 fixed solar panels, on the ground and near the railway station, to directly supply electrified railways. 

If this project, named "  First Light  " were to prove itself, similar and larger initiatives could quickly emerge.

A Riding Sunbeams project

The "  First Light  " project is led by Riding Sunbeams for the South Western Railway Company. Totally funded by Innovate UK and the Ministry of Transport, the project is supported by many groups, including a charity dedicated to climate change. 

This pilot project will be deployed at Aldershot station and the director of Riding Sunbeams does not hide it: he hopes "  that this will pave the way for a rail sector without emission in the United Kingdom  ".

For the rail company, the installation and use of these renewable energies is an excellent way to take into account the recent legislation on zero emissions.