Embedding solar panels in roads seems like a no-brainer (miles and miles of open space with little or no shade), were it not for the constant abuse of rubber tires. A French company appears to have solved that problem, though, inaugurating the world's first photovoltaic road this week.
The solar panels are installed on a one-kilometer (0.6-mile) two-lane road in the small French village of Tourouvre-au-Perche, The Guardian reported. The road opened for traffic Wednesday, in the hopes that it can generate enough electricity to power all of the streetlights in the village over a two-year test period.
Colas, the road's designer and a subsidiary of telecom giant Bouygues, says that it can withstand all types of vehicle traffic, thanks to its composite construction. The extremely thin photovoltaic panels can survive not only vehicle loads, but also expanding and contracting pavement caused by the sun. During the test, it will see about 2,000 cars per day.
About 200 square feet of solar road is enough to meet the electricity needs of a single home in France, according to Colas. Tourouvre-au-Perche is in Normandy, a region renowned for its lousy, grey weather, so it will serve as a good test case for how much electricity the road can actually generate in suboptimal conditions.
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Eventually, French officials say they want to install solar panels on one out of every 620 miles of public roads, according to The Guardian. One significant downside, however, is economic viability: a solar panel installed on a bike path in the Netherlands last year has generated 3,000 kWh of energy, The Guardian reported, but it cost enough to buy 520,000 kwH of conventional electricity.
Critics, including Marc Jedliczka of the Network for Energetic Transition advocacy group, say the cost is too great to make the roads practical.
"It's undoubtedly a technical achievement," he told Le Monde. But, he said, "we are sure that it's very expensive without being sure if it works."