Electrifying Water Buses: A Case Study on Diesel-to-Electric Conversion in Venice

Abstract

This study presents the conversion of a diesel-based watercraft for public transportation in Venice, Italy, to an electric propulsion technology, with a view to wide future adoption of electrical transportation. It takes into account energy-storage systems, electrical machines, and drives and examines them in light of economic, environmental, and social issues. Some alternative solutions based on hybrid diesel-electric and full-electric (FE ) powertrains are compared in terms of weight, cost, and payback times. The comparison shows that a hybrid diesel-engine lithium (Li) battery (LB) is the best option for an easy first implementation, even when considering the existing infrastructure.