With the extensive railway system in Switzerland, solar panels could cover an area equivalent to 760 football fields, generating 1 terawatt-hour (TWh) of solar electricity annually.
The Swiss startup Sun-Ways has developed the idea of installing solar panels along railway tracks, as reported by Interesting Engineering on March 18. This initiative could be applied to half of the railway tracks globally. The space between the tracks is wide enough to accommodate standard-sized solar panels without obstructing train operations, according to Sun-Ways co-founder Baptiste Danichert.
Solar panels are laid along the tracks using a special train. (Photo: Sun-Ways)
Installing large-scale solar panels is challenging due to limited space. However, solar panels placed between the tracks do not obstruct visibility or negatively impact the environment. Sun-Ways is implementing factory-assembled solar panels in Switzerland. The panels, one meter wide, are positioned between two rails and secured to the tracks using a piston mechanism. A train manufactured by the Swiss railway maintenance company Scheuchzer carries out the installation, laying the solar panels along the tracks as it runs, similar to rolling out a carpet, according to Sun-Ways.
Installing solar panels along railway tracks is not a new idea. Solar panels mounted on sleepers have been tested by two companies: Greenrail from Italy and Bankset Energy from the UK. However, Sun-Ways is the first company to be granted a patent for a removable system, in collaboration with EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne.
According to Danichert, the ability to remove the panels is essential for maintenance tasks such as rail grinding. The electricity generated will be fed into the grid and used to supply local residents. On the other hand, using energy for railway operations will be more challenging and will require specialized technology.
Sun-Ways’ experiments still require further improvement. The International Railway Federation has expressed concerns that the panels could suffer from numerous small cracks, increasing the risk of wildfires and potentially distracting train drivers due to reflections. To prevent reflections from blinding drivers, Sun-Ways claims that their panels are more durable than standard solar panels.
The Swiss railway system has a total length of 5,317 km and could be completely covered with solar panels, equivalent to an area of 760 football fields, excluding tunnels and areas with limited sunlight. This railway system could generate 1 terawatt-hour (TWh) of solar electricity annually, amounting to about 2% of the total electricity demand in the country, according to Sun-Ways. The company plans to expand solar panel installations in other countries such as Germany, Austria, Italy, the USA, and Asia in the coming years. The pilot project will focus on the public railway system in western Switzerland, near the Buttes station.
