**1. Introduction**

Different technologies and structural changes are coming to city life with EVs. The number of EVs has increased exponentially in the last decade because there are many benefits that EVs bring to their owners and the environment. According to the Electric Vehicles Initiative (EVI), the fourteen member countries have accelerated the development of EVs. Also, the EV30@30 Campaign was launched by the members of EVI to increase the EV market by 30% of the total of all vehicles until 2030 [1]. In addition to the countries, several companies have also supported the Campaign [2].

On the other hand, the cities and the citizens must be ready for the requirements of the emerging technologies [3]. Getting cities ready for the basic infrastructure of EVs will determine the permanent transition times of EVs from gasoline-powered vehicles. Therefore, understanding EVs and their infrastructure are crucial [4].

In order to make ready a city for EVs, a strategy must be determined which includes the following indicators:


Obviously, a strategic plan can be shaped not only at the city level but also at the federal level with a host of incentives and initiatives [2, 3]. Also, the goals of the plan must be realistic and flexible to change for unpredictable future requirements. The strategic plans of many cities, published recently, have been considered within this framework. In addition, many countries have announced their roadmap for EVs and highlighted key policies [5]. Because EVs are not only electric cars. The EV term covers all transportation vehicles from bikes to busses, from heavy-duty vehicles to ships and aircrafts which are powered electrical energy. Therefore, a wide range of vehicles is about to transform into electrically powered vehicles.

In this chapter, information is given about the way to be followed to create the electric vehicle infrastructure of a city within the scope of these plans. There are several benefits and challenges for cities and citizens to be ready for them. In the next section, EVs are introduced. Then, a necessary strategic plan is outlined. Finally, the conclusion is provided.

#### **2. Motivation**

Electric vehicles are not an invention of today's technology. The first EV was seen in the 1800s. From the first EV to today's modern EVs, the evaluation of EV technology can be summarized as in **Figure 1** [6].

In the beginning, electric-powered vehicles were popular since they were quiet, easy to drive especially for women. Later, as gasoline stations available everywhere, the interest in gasoline-powered vehicles was increased. When the price of gasoline has risen, EVs were retaken into account. However, their small range and long charging time were still the main barriers in front of EVs. Whenever the ranges are increased and necessary infrastructures are constructed, the popularity of electric vehicles has gained more attention [7, 8]. According to [2, 9], it is clearly seen that the direction in the vehicle preference has been towards to EVs. In **Figure 2**, annual EV market growth is given [10].

According to [1], worldwide EV sales in 2017 was over 1 million and then two years later, it surpassed the 2 million mark in 2019. Technical improvements on EVs

**Figure 1.** *Timeline of the EVs.*

*Strategies for Electric Vehicle Infrastructure of Cities: Benefits and Challenges DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.98862*

**Figure 2.** *Annual EV market growth (%) by country from 2013 to 2020.*

have been increased to the attractiveness of EVs. The demand for EVs is further increased if the cost of EVs is reduced and the travel range is increased. By the end of 2020, the number of electric vehicles worldwide, in the light-duty segment, exceeded 10 million [2]. Among the countries, the largest number of ELDVs was registered in China, with 4.5 million. China was followed by European countries with 1.4 million registered ELDVs. In addition, a number of EV manufacturers, such as Volvo, Ford, General Motors, announced that they only sell EVs from 2030 [2].

Not only in ELDV sales but also in EHDT and electric bus sales, China is the dominant country all over the world. In 2020, the number of electric busses was 600 thousand and the number of EHDT was 31 thousand [2]. According to the IEA, the global prediction on the number of EVs are summarized with the following **Table 1** [11].

Today, many governments around the world have focused on making all current vehicles electrified at a specific time in the near future. In addition, studies on the necessary infrastructure and the adoption of citizens are carried out within the framework of strategic plans.

A strategic plan should include a training section in which EVs' terminology and basic infrastructures are introduced. Therefore, in the present section, the fundamental information is given.

### **2.1 Classification of EVs**

EVs do not have a unique structure. Depending on the energy source, EVs are classified as follows:


• *Hydrogen Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs)* are currently under development since their electrical energy is obtained from hydrogen. It is presently difficult to storage and refuels the hydrogen. A limited number of FCEVs are available between 500 and 600 km driving range.

### **2.2 Charging methods**

Another classification can be performed for the Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment (EVSE) which is the charging facilities of the EVs as shown in **Figure 3**.

In order to charge an EV at home or at the office, Level 1 type charging stations are suitable since they can be used with home electricity provided by a standard AC wall outlet. It is ideal for EV owners who generally preferred to charge their vehicles at home [12]. Level 1 cord set is generally provided with most EVs.

Level 2 type charging stations provides faster charging and are commonly installed for public usage in car parks and supermarkets. 3 or 4 EVs can be charged a day by using this type of charging station [12].

Level 3 type charging stations uses 3-phase supply voltage for fast charge. It is suitable for EV owners who need quick charges such as commercial vehicles and taxis [12].

Level 4 charging stations, namely developed by Tesla, enable rapid charge for larger battery-powered EVs [12].

Induction charging or wireless charging is an emerging technology based on power transfer by an electromagnetic field [13, 14]. The efficient power transmission can be performed by a small space between the EV and inductive coils mounted on the ground. However, the space is directly related to the load on the vehicle and the clearance of the ground [15]. Protected connections without any cable and low infection risk are the main advantages of induction charging, while slower and inefficient charging makes it more expensive. The main benefit of induction charging can be seen on public transportation vehicles since charging the vehicle on the road reduces the total size of the battery for the trip. Therefore, wireless energy transfer to EVs is currently under development [16].

Pantograph is another solution for EVs especially commercial vehicles such as busses and trucks. More than 150 kW DC power can be supplied by a conductive charging system mounted at the top of the busses or trucks [17].

A patented approach to supply power to EVs is swapping batteries at battery swapping stations (BSS) [18, 19]. Consumer acceptance, non-standard batteries and technical challenges on SoC of the batteries are the main barriers to battery swapping.

## **2.3 Charging modes**

Another technical detail of the EV charging is the charging modes which is defined by the reference standard is IEC 61851–1. There are four different charging modes as shown in **Figure 4**.


**Table 1.**

*Global predictions of EVs with different scenarios.*

*Strategies for Electric Vehicle Infrastructure of Cities: Benefits and Challenges DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.98862*

**Figure 3.** *Charging facilities of the EVs.*

**Mode 1**: This charging mode (Schuko mode) is generally used in two-wheel vehicles such as electric bikes and scooters. The household outlet is directly connected to the vehicles by an extended cable without any safety device. This is currently unpopular and also no longer used for EVs.

**Mode 2**: The electrical energy from the household outlet to the vehicle is transmitted over a control box which is also known as a portable EV charger. In order to fully charge a battery, the EV must be connected for up to 16 hours.

**Mode 3**: An AC power supply directly connected to the electric distribution network is used in this type of charging mode. The power supply is generally mounted a wall and is used in both public areas and residences. The typical charging duration in this mode is between 4 and 9 hours, depending on the battery size of the EV.

**Mode 4**: It is generally used in public areas due to its high cost. The charging station provides faster charging over an AC-to-DC converter mounted in the station. It takes less than 1 hour to charge an EV to 80%.

#### **2.4 Essential energy phenomenon**

As the battery capacity is increased to extend the range of electric vehicles, the required energy to charge the battery in a short time interval will pose a problem for

**Figure 4.** *Charging modes of the EVs.*

the electrical energy distribution grid of the cities. In addition, the waiting time to charge EVs and waiting time for the available charging stations will be the problems of EV owners as the number of EVs on the roads increases [20].

In recent years, different solutions have been proposed for the rising problems. Scheduling of charging [21, 22], placement of charging stations [23], different pricing methodologies [24] and also integrating the renewable energy sources [25] are frequently studied to supply energy to the vehicles. These solutions also bring new habits the citizens. At the same time, it brings great responsibilities to local governments in the implementation of these solutions. In this sense, sharing experiences among the cities becomes more important to find appropriate policies, financial supports and also the adoption of citizens to the new technology. More than 100 cities come together for an initial period of 5 years in order to build a network for The Electric Vehicles Initiative Global EV Pilot City Programme (EVI-PCP) [26].

The necessary number of charging stations, either home type or publicly accessible, are installed proportionally to the number of EVs on the roads. Especially Level 3 and Level 4 charging stations play an important role in the amount of load on the electrical energy distribution grid. According to [2], these charging stations are increasingly installed in all regions. Necessary infrastructure for the charging station to provide parking areas and necessary electrification have to be planned. In order to meet the energy needs of electric vehicles continuously, a target has been set by Alternative Fuel Infrastructure Directive (AFID) which is 1 public charging station per 10 EVs [27]. There are also several patent studies to overcome the charging scheduling phenomenon of EVs [25–34].

In addition, renewable energies are also studied for this purpose [8, 35]. Although the main target is to provide sufficient public charging stations, electric busses and electric heavy-duty trucks, medium freight trucks (MFTs) and heavy freight trucks (HFTs) have also been on the roads. Therefore, the needed energy supply equipment for HFTs and necessary energy sources may be a big problem in cities with heavy commercial transport. This problem brings a new solution with megachargers of 1 MW which satisfies the need for HFTs [2]. A project on the clean transit corridor used by heavy commercial trucks started by West Coast Clean Transit Corridor Initiative to reduce the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission by the diesel trucks. Another project scope is the required amount of space to install EVSE for the heavy commercial trucks since these vehicles may need to be charged frequently [36].

Electric vehicles are considered not only for road transport but also for sea and air transport. In order to contribute to the reduction of GHG emission, shipping and flying vehicles are planned to power with electrical energy [37–41].
