Harmonizing Solar Energy and Public Transit: A Data-Driven Analysis of Integrating Photovoltaic Systems with Electric Bus Charging Infrastructure

As an energy-intensive sector, transportation is accountable for nearly 29% of global energy usage and 20% of worldwide carbon emissions. To identify viable avenues toward eco-friendly and sustainable transportation, this study examines the integration of distributed photovoltaic (PV) power generation systems within public transit infrastructure. In this paper, a sophisticated, data-driven framework is introduced for assessing the feasibility of harmonizing bus charging depots with PV power generation. The framework amalgamates diverse datasets, including solar angles, irradiance, meteorological temperature readings, public transport infrastructure characteristics, and bus GPS trajectories, collected in Beijing during 2020. The correlation between PV energy generation and the electrical demand of bus charging depots is analyzed and quantified. To optimize the adoption of PV energy, energy storage solutions are strategically deployed at bus charging depots. A case study, employing GPS data from 20,992 buses and geospatial data from 678 bus depots, serves to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed model. The empirical results reveal a substantial reduction in charging costs by approximately 3.16 billion yuan, coupled with a decrease in carbon emissions by 231,800 tons. Additionally, over a 25-year lifecycle, the PV systems supply an estimated 4.92 billion kWh of energy to electric buses.