Royal Imtech : Minister Kamp opens SolaRoad solar cycle lane in Krommenie

PRESS RELEASE

Minister Kamp opens SolaRoad solar cycle lane in Krommenie, the Netherlands

World premiere: first-ever road to convert sunlight into electricity

Krommenie, 12 November, 2014

The Netherlands' minister of Economic Affairs Henk Kamp and Elisabeth Post of the North

Holland Provincial Executive biked into the future on November 12, officially opening

SolaRoad with an inaugural ride along the solar cycle lane on modern e-bikes. 'SolaRoad

is a world first that will put the Netherlands on the map as a leader in sustainable

innovation', minister Kamp said. Post, a member of the Provincial Executive, agreed:

'Today marks a milestone in SolaRoad's development. I am proud of our participation

in the consortium and I'm looking forward to the future, which will see SolaRoad developing

from a pilot into a fully-fledged product.'
SolaRoad is being developed by the Netherlands' TNO research institute, North Holland

Province, Ooms Civiel and Imtech Traffic&Infra.

Test phase
The 100-metre test route is made up of a series of concrete modules measuring 2.5 by 3.5

metres. Along one of its two lanes, solar cells have been embedded in the modules and

covered with a layer of tempered glass of about a centimetre thick. The other cycle lane,

which hasn't been fitted with solar cells, will be used to test the relative merits of various

types of surfacing. Over the coming weeks tests will be carried out to see how much

energy the cycle path can generate.
This SolaRoad test route is situated in Krommenie, running alongside the N203 motorway

from the Texaco filling station on the railway side (GPS data: 52.493875, 4.767134).

Preliminary results

Solar energy generated by the road can be used to power anything from street lighting to

traffic lights, electric cars using the road and even households. Over the coming three

years various measurements and tests will be carried out to develop SolaRoad further.

The first test results since the cycle path was first taken into use on 24 October are

according to expectations: some 140 kWh of electricity was generated by this first

stretch of SolaRoad.

Road of the future
A group of thirty children allowed to test the new cycle path agreed it offered a 'smooth

ride' but above all that it was 'cool to be able to bike along the world's first-ever SolaRoad.'

The children feature in the new SolaRoad video launched today, which shows them

cycling along this road of the future.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note for editorial staff (not for publication)

For more information and interviews, please contact one of the people listed below.

Sten de Wit, spokesperson for SolaRoad, telephone: 00 31 (0)6-1202 1647,

Soraya Roasa Saenz, press officer for North Holland province, tel: 00 31 (0)6-53446839,

For questions about images and footage, contact our communications manager Jannemieke van Dieren,

unsubscribe from this list | update subscription preferences