KIEL. At the meeting of the FESH advisory board on 17.5.2021, representatives from the energy industry, logistics sector, science, municipal institutions, and environmental and nature conservation associations exchanged ideas with the project partners.

Acceptance – an important factor for research projects

“Continuous exchange with the stakeholders affected by the field trial is important to us so that the project produces results that are supported by a broad social base,” explains Johannes Grützner, head of department at the Ministry for Energy Transition, Agriculture Environment, Nature and Digitalization. “Reducing greenhouse gas emissions with technology-open solutions in the transport sector is an essential goal, but also a complex task. Discussions with representatives from research, companies and associations are therefore of key importance to us,” adds Michael Pirschel, head of department at the Ministry of Economics, Transport, Labor, Technology and Tourism. The FESH Advisory Board therefore meets every six months to discuss current developments in the project and issues of practical relevance.

High need for explanation of new technologies

One focus this time: acceptance research. It is part of the accompanying scientific research that is investigating questions about the technology, ecology and economy of the eHighway in the FESH project. “In addition to direct feedback, we use media analysis, interviews and surveys, and workshops to determine a comprehensive picture of respondents’ current attitudes toward the project,” explains Dr. Ilona Kryl, of Friedrich Schiller University in Jena, one of the FESH research partners. The evaluations can also be used to determine approaches for increasing acceptance. Research projects such as the eHighway-Schleswig-Holstein (FESH) field trial often deal with technologies and topics that are initially unknown to the general public. This results in a high need for explanation. The direct exchange in the advisory board as well as the results of acceptance research result in differentiated approaches to address legitimate concerns and thus increase acceptance.

Overarching accompanying research

In the advisory board, Dr. Uta Burghard from Fraunhofer ISI presents the scientific accompanying research on all three German eHighway projects (FESH, ELISA in Hesse and eWayBW in Baden-Württemberg). Findings from these projects are being brought together in the overarching BOLD project (Begleitforschung Oberleitungs-Lkw Deutschland), which focuses not only on acceptance but also on environmental impacts. “This allows us to determine which overarching issues are relevant to all projects and should be moved by all partners together,” Burghard explains, pointing out the challenges for acceptance and the different information needs and interests of, for example, freight forwarders, the public and directly affected residents:inside or emergency services such as police and fire departments.

The results of the acceptance research are being incorporated into the ongoing work of the FESH project. For example, FAQs are regularly expanded to cover both basic questions and more in-depth information needs.

Interested parties are welcome to participate in the continuous online survey by Friedrich Schiller University Jena at any time.