The research activity focused on the potential transition to electric power for three major transportation sectors, continuing the work done in the previous year. The first part of the study addressed the fleets used in environmental services, particularly in waste collection. The current fleets are primarily based on diesel traction, which, combined with the high fuel consumption during collection, stationary, and compaction phases, makes these vehicles more polluting and noisier than cars and trucks dedicated solely to freight transport. However, the daily operation of waste collection vehicles, characterized by programmed routes and continuous “stop and go” patterns during collection, makes them ideal candidates for conversion to electric power. Based on fuel consumption data, an energy analysis was conducted, and the specific consumption was calculated under the assumption that the diesel fleet would be converted to electric. With the support of AMSA (Milan’s environmental services company), energy requirements were then estimated, and an initial charging strategy was evaluated at various operational sites.

The study was completed with an economic comparison between the diesel and electric solutions. The second focus area was lake navigation, aimed at public transport for people and vehicles. Based on the characterization of the usage of the vessels and their consumption, six electrification strategies were analyzed for three “typical routes”, evaluating their technical and economic feasibility. A focus was then conducted on the impact of lake navigation on air quality, modeling its contribution to pollutant concentrations both in a specific reference domain and at receptors along the lake shores. Lastly, the study addressed the electrification of large ships at dock (cold ironing). By using a database containing port traffic data and the technical specifications of the ships, it was possible to calculate the amount of power required by each port and, conversely, the amount of energy that could be “supplied” by the vessels in the case of bidirectional connections. The analysis was completed with an environmental and economic evaluation, comparing onboard generation with land-based generation solutions.