The Ray announced in a press release earlier this week a new partnership with Sustainable Electrified Transportation (SELECT) Research Center, led by Utah State University.

As a member of SELECT, The Ray will join the nation’s leading researchers and experts across sectors,  including automotive OEMs, suppliers/manufacturers, civil engineering firms, departments of transportation and academia, in understanding and developing ways in which a fully electrified transportation ecosystem can be strategically and successfully piloted in the near future.

These conversations, partnerships and collaborations, will open doors for The Ray to bring world-leading technologies developed by SELECT members to the East Coast and to The Ray in Georgia for public demonstration.

SELECT members collaborate throughout the year to develop technologies for the electrified transportation future, including EV charging infrastructure. At the biennial Conference on Electric Roads and Vehicles, scientists from around the world convene to bring together and elevate innovations in wired and un-wired charging technologies including faster and more powerful charging stations, overhead electrified cables, in-road charging from an electrified rail system, and dynamic wireless in-lane charging.

The SELECT Center boasts a quarter-mile test track, which is currently demonstrating a 20-20 KW dynamic in-lane charging to vehicles in motion, including university buses.

Future plans include an upgrade to the current system that will better simulate an operational road, like The Ray, which is used daily by passenger and freight vehicles.

“Zero carbon in the highway transportation sector is an achievable goal,” said Harriet Langford, president and founder of The Ray.

“EVs are a huge part of the roadmap to zero, but we’re going to need robust charging infrastructure in order to do that. We recognized that from the very beginning. That’s why our very first technology demonstration on The Ray was a solar-powered fast charging station that opened up I-85 for EV drivers. A robust charging infrastructure can’t be limited to urban areas.”

“All [autonomous vehicles] are EVs,” said The Ray’s Executive Director, Allie Kelly.

“We’re excited to be a part of this group that is pushing the boundaries in what we call the energy-transportation nexus, which will be critical in the highway of the future.”

“On behalf of our academic and industry members, the SELECT Center is thrilled to have The Ray as our newest Center member,” said SELECT Center Executive Director, David Christensen. “The Ray’s ambitious and on-target work aligns so perfectly with SELECT’s objectives to see an electrified, smart, and sustainable transportation future. We look forward to the positive impact in Georgia and globally that comes from our collaboration.”

The Ray’s membership will last for the next 36 months.