E-cars for a greener Luxembourg

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In commercial zones around Luxembourg, employees from the same company often need to travel to the same place each day for meetings or other work. ZAC-eMovin found a solution by assessing the potential of exploiting professional car-sharing and -pooling services using electric cars and electric charging stations. This evaluation has now been deployed in three commercial zones around Luxembourg City.Djamel Khadraoui, Head of Unit, Trusted Service UnitClimate change, energy shortages, urban congestion, noise and air pollution are just some of the challenges facing urban centres across Europe. Electric or ‘e’ cars offer several benefits over traditional engines, including better efficiency, less noise pollution and zero carbon emissions, when combined with renewable energy.The EU-funded ZAC-eMovin project tested how feasible an electric car-sharing network would be for professional use in Luxembourg.Sharing is (green) caringSharing an e-car makes sense, helping to save money, energy and the environment in the process. Car-pooling and other shared-use scenarios are also ideal uses for the e-car programme. ZAC-eMovin trialled and studied e-car sharing in three zones around Luxembourg City.A charging station and electric car were made available to employees at a participating company in each location. A specially designed electronic registration system was also set up in the project to monitor their e-car use in order to better understand the potential for wider implementation at business locations around Luxembourg.Co-managed by Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) and Centre d'Etudes de Populations, de Pauvreté et de Politiques Socio Economiques / International Network for Studies in Technology, Environment, Alternatives, Development  (CEPS/INSTEAD), ZAC-eMovin ran its trials at Enovos in Strassen, P&T Luxembourg (Bureau de Poste) in Cloche d’Or and LIST (the former Centre de Recherche Publique Henri Tudor) in Kirchberg. Each participating company reported back on the benefits and areas where improvements could be made.Full speed aheadThanks to the demonstration project, ZAC-eMovin established a strong business case for professional use and clearly showed the appeal and benefits of e-cars and e-charging stations in industrial and urban settings. The project’s findings also provided valuable insight into the potential for e-cars being rolled out across Luxembourg, and the development of a national e-mobility strategy.The e-car charging station in Kirchberg is popular with both professionals and private users. A semi-public model was deemed the most suitable as part of the Luxembourg-wide roll-out plan for e-stations.The pilot project coincided with the development of apps geared towards improving transport and mobility. ZAC-eMovin also worked on fostering greater general awareness of car-sharing and e-mobility options throughout Luxembourg.Total investment and EU fundingTotal investment for the project “ZAC-eMovin” is EUR 327 356, with the EU’s European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR  81 839  through the “Regional Research and Innovation” Operational Programme for the 2007-2013 programming period. The investment falls under the priority “Development of TEN-T and multimodal transport”.