GOFAST ready for trucks
GOFAST opens at service area Oftringen
Until recently, the utilitarian named Oftringen Ost was an unremarkable service area on the A1 motorway. It now has an electric charging station with eight high-performance e-vehicle charging spots. Swiss company GOFAST designed the station to be ready for the future electrification of heavy goods traffic. The project is part of the Swiss government’s electromobility roadmap, which aims to set up fast-charging stations at 100 service areas across Switzerland’s entire road network by 2030.
Working towards the goals of the Paris Agreement on climate change, the federal government, along with representatives of cantons, cities, and the utility and mobility sectors, signed a roadmap promoting electromobility in late 2018. Part of the roadmap involves expanding the fast-charging infrastructure at 100 motorway service areas across Switzerland. The Swiss company GOFAST, which won the tender and was assigned 20 fast-charging stations, has now opened the first of these at the Oftringen Ost service area. The newly opened fast-charging station on the A1 motorway certainly stands out, even though this stretch of highway, between Solothurn and Lenzburg, has already one of the densest networks of charging stations. GOFAST alone operates 26 charging points at eight fast-charging locations along this 60 km stretch of motorway.
Green energy from the roof for all electric vehicles
From the western approach, the five-metre-high steel roof structure immediately catches the eye. GOFAST wants to provide e-vehicle drivers with shelter from the elements and, in the long term, become a recognisable provider throughout the country. Switzerland’s largest roof for a refuelling station is likely to be a hit among electric vehicle drivers. In many cases, drivers are completely exposed to the rain at charging stations. The roughly 160 m2 roof surface also doubles as a power plant: its photovoltaic generate an estimated 40,000 kilowatt hours of electricity per year. The site runs entirely on Swiss green electricity, as do all of GOFAST’s fast-charging stations.
