Responding to the Austrian Energy and Climate Plan calling for only emission-free taxis licensing by 2025, eTaxi Austria has launched the first electric vehicle (EV) site testing automated charging options at the taxi stand.

Once successfully tested, the automated system will be installed in a pilot program at 10 sites accommodating more than 60 vehicles in Vienna and Graz.

At the Wien Energie Simmering power plant demonstration site, Hyundai IONIQ5 and Volkswagen ID.4 electric models are powered by the Matrix Charging system amid typical application scenarios of daily taxi operations. The testing site is expected to provide insights on automated charging and various load management scenarios specific to eTaxi applications.

The site recreates an actual taxi stand. Instead of plugging the EV into a charging point with a cable, eTaxi vehicles, equipped with an underbody connector, can be linked with the push of a button to a Matrix Charging Pad set flush into the pavement at the taxi stand. The taxis are automatically charged without the driver leaving the vehicle.

“Thanks to our intelligent load management, green electricity refueling at the taxi stand works in a way that is gentle on the grid and can also be implemented for larger e-taxi fleets," explained Michael Strebl, CEO of Wien Energie.

“Instead of an extra trip to a charging station, the time at the taxi stand can be used for charging. An important step in making eTaxis more practical," said Leopold Kautzner, chairman of the transport industry section of the Vienna Chamber of Commerce.

A consortium supporting the project includes the Vienna and Styrian Chambers of Commerce, Wien Energie and Energie Graz, Easelink, the Graz Energy Agency, Taxi 40100 and Taxi 31300, vibe moves you, and Quintessenz Organisationsberatung.

The project is funded by the Climate and Energy Fund as part of the “Zero Emissions Mobility Implementation” program and the Graz Climate Protection Fund.