Decarbonising South Africa's long-distance paratransit: Battery swapping with solar-charged minibus trailers

The expected electrification of Sub-Sahara Africa's urban paratransit with an electric minibus taxi (eMBT) has received increased attention in energy research and expenditure analyses. In this paper, several long-distance routes between the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape in South Africa are assessed for electrification. To mitigate the long charging time of eMBTs, we propose a battery swapping approach in which a trailer acts as a mobile battery bank to the vehicle (eMBT+T); which is to be charged from a solar charging station to reduce emissions. Compared to the current MBTs, the proposed model results in only a 6% trip time increase. Crucially, emissions are reduced by 75%, where a 20% increase is seen when using an eMBT. The results show that a trailer battery enables viable long-distance electrical paratransit, and with the integration of solar power charging, this transition can also be sustainable.

Automated summary

The expected electrification of Sub-Sahara Africa's urban paratransit with an electric minibus taxi (eMBT) has gained attention. To address the long charging time of eMBTs, a battery swapping approach and solar charging station are proposed, resulting in a 6% trip time increase but a 75% reduction in emissions. The use of a trailer battery enables viable long-distance electrical paratransit, making the transition sustainable.