Wireless charging roads

Also known as Dynamic wireless power transfer, DWPT, In-road wireless charging

Dynamic wireless charging uses coils built into a road to send electricity by magnetic induction to a compatible vehicle while it moves. Short public and test-track pilots report that the energy transfer can work, but efficiency, cost and durability over years have not been shown independently.

Pilot and early commercialReported, unverifiedReviewed 21 Oct 2026
AI illustration · Illustrative scene, not a photograph of the specific device or experiment.

In plain language

Dynamic wireless charging means a car can receive electricity while it drives over a section of road that has charging coils built into it. The road sends power across a small gap using a magnetic field, so no cable or plug is needed. The car needs its own receiver fitted underneath, so an ordinary electric car cannot use these roads without that equipment.

The idea makes most sense where the same vehicles repeat the same route, such as a shuttle, bus or delivery fleet. Early pilots report that energy transfer can work on short stretches of road. They do not yet show that a whole road network is affordable, reliable over many years or useful for most drivers.

Technical explanation

A dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT) system embeds primary coils in the road surface and fits a secondary coil and power electronics to the vehicle. Power electronics energise road segments, and a magnetic field couples energy across the air gap to the vehicle as it passes.

Standards are split by use case. SAE J2954_202408 covers stationary wireless power transfer for light-duty plug-in vehicles, and states that only surface-mounted installations are covered in that revision, with dynamic applications to be specified in J2954/3. IEC PAS 61980-5:2024 covers off-board supply equipment for magnetic-field dynamic wireless power transfer to road vehicles in motion, and its title names interoperability and safety. A publicly available specification is not proof of certification or nationwide interoperability.

Measurement is the main open question. Efficiency needs metered energy on the grid side and the vehicle side, including road-side conversion equipment. Energy delivered to a vehicle is not the same as end-to-end system efficiency. Conductive rails and overhead lines are different electric road architectures and should not be treated as evidence for inductive road charging.

What the evidence says

Each statement is typed by the strength of its evidence and linked to the source that supports it.

Demonstrated Shown in a published experiment, test or shipping product.

IEC PAS 61980-5:2024 covers off-board supply equipment for magnetic-field dynamic wireless power transfer to electric road vehicles in motion.

Sources: [5] · Scope summary

The Swedish Smartroad Gotland demonstration electrified 1.6 km of a 4.1 km route, used by an electric truck, and its technology test ran through 2023.

Sources: [3] · Smartroad Gotland section (Swedish) · medium confidence

Procurement for Sweden's planned permanent electric road on the E20 was cancelled in August 2023 because of increased costs, and the government removed the project from the national transport plan in February 2025.

Sources: [4] · Project status

SAE J2954_202408 covers only surface-mounted installations, and dynamic applications are to be specified in SAE J2954/3.

Sources: [6] · Scope statement

Reported, unverified Stated by a company or team but not independently confirmed.

The City of Detroit announced in November 2023 a quarter-mile wireless charging segment on 14th Street, to be used to test and perfect the technology with a Ford EV Transit shuttle fitted with an Electreon receiver.

Sources: [1] · Announcement text

Electreon reports that an equipped Fiat 500 increased its state of charge from 22% to 48% while cruising on a dedicated test track in Italy.

Sources: [2] · Project page results · low confidence

Electreon reports that an equipped Iveco e-bus drove three days in a row without losing power on the Italian test track.

Sources: [2] · Project page results · low confidence

The Swedish Transport Administration gives a rough, preliminary estimate of SEK 20 to 45 million per kilometre for building electric roads, including the electricity grid. The figure depends on the technology used and the share of road electrified. It covers electric roads generally, not wireless roads alone.

Sources: [3] · Cost estimate (Swedish) · medium confidence

Proposed A design or plan that has not yet been built or tested.

Electreon says the next planned step is to extend the system along the A35 (Brebemi) toll road between Brescia and Milan.

Sources: [2] · Project page plans

Limitations and open problems

  • Public demonstrations so far are short road sections or dedicated test tracks, not operating networks.
  • The sources reviewed do not give end-to-end efficiency. Energy delivered to a vehicle does not give the grid-to-battery efficiency.
  • Standards cover only parts of the problem. SAE J2954 does not cover dynamic road charging, and IEC PAS 61980-5 is a specification, not proof of certification or interoperability between manufacturers.
  • Costs are uncertain. Sweden's planned permanent electric road on the E20 was cancelled in 2023 because of increased costs and was removed from the national transport plan in 2025. The source does not state which electric road technology was planned.
  • Durability is unproven. The sources reviewed do not report winter performance, road repair, heavy traffic or buried coil failure over years.

Possible future uses

Speculative

Ideas, not predictions. None of these has been demonstrated.

  • Electrified loops for shuttles and campus routes, where vehicles repeatedly cross the same segments.
  • Bus and taxi corridors with charging at intervals along the route, in place of charging only at terminals.
  • Heavy freight corridors, where in-motion energy could allow smaller batteries, if grid capacity and axle-load durability can be met.

Product concepts: Wireless charging lane for bus and shuttle routes

Timeline

  1. 2023Swedish Smartroad Gotland demonstration, with 1.6 km of electrified road on a 4.1 km route, tested with an electric truck, runs through 2023. Sources: [3]
  2. Aug 2023Procurement for Sweden's planned permanent electric road on the E20 is cancelled because of increased costs. Sources: [4]
  3. 29 Nov 2023City of Detroit announces a quarter-mile wireless charging segment on 14th Street, used to test a Ford EV Transit shuttle fitted with an Electreon receiver. Sources: [1]
  4. 13 Aug 2024SAE J2954_202408 is revised. It covers stationary light-duty wireless charging and leaves dynamic applications to J2954/3. Sources: [6]
  5. 12 Dec 2024IEC PAS 61980-5:2024 is published, covering off-board equipment for dynamic wireless power transfer to vehicles in motion. Sources: [5]
  6. Feb 2025The Swedish government removes Sweden's first permanent electric road, on the E20, from the national transport infrastructure plan. Sources: [4]

Futures this could help bring about

AI illustration
How far away?

Roads that charge cars as they drive

Pilots · 4 of 8 steps done

Glossary

Dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT)
Transferring electricity by magnetic induction to a vehicle while it is moving over an equipped road section.
Inductive coupling
Transferring energy between two coils through a shared magnetic field across an air gap.
Air gap
The distance between the road-side coil and the vehicle receiver coil.
Electric road system (ERS)
Any road-based system that supplies electricity to vehicles, including inductive, conductive rail and overhead line designs.

Sources

  1. other
    MDOT, City of Detroit and Electreon unveil nation's first public EV-charging roadway at Michigan Central
    City of Detroit, 29 Nov 2023. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
  2. company announcement
    Arena of the Future brings wireless power to Italy's highways
    Electreon, 21 Oct 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
  3. government report
    Programme for electrification of the state road network
    Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), 21 Oct 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
  4. government report
    Electric road E20, Hallsberg-Örebro
    Swedish Transport Administration (Trafikverket), 21 Oct 2026. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
  5. standard
    Electric vehicle wireless power transfer (WPT) systems - Part 5: Interoperability and safety of dynamic wireless power transfer (D-WPT) for electric vehicles
    International Electrotechnical Commission, 12 Dec 2024. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.
  6. standard
    J2954_202408: Wireless Power Transfer for Light-Duty Plug-in/Electric Vehicles and Alignment Methodology
    SAE International, 13 Aug 2024. Accessed 21 Oct 2026.

Revision history

3 changes since this profile was created.

Changes on 21 Oct 2026
Published on owner instruction (content loop iteration 7)fd22377
Sources and claims re-checked against originalsfbb434c
Initial profile drafted from Codex research note and primary sources0eba374