Honda Builds Roads That Charge EVs While They Drive

Honda does not want electric vehicles to pull over and plug in. It wants the road to send power to the car while it keeps moving, and that idea is moving from a closed test track to Japan's public highways.

Honda, Taisei Corporation, and Taisei Rotec have built a system that wirelessly charges electric vehicles (EVs) while they drive. Logistics and commercial trucks are first in line for public-road trials in Japan's 2027 fiscal year, which starts April 1, 2027.

Honda's Dynamic Wireless Charging Road Moves Into Testing

The setup embeds transmitter coils in the pavement. They create a magnetic field that a receiver on the vehicle turns back into electricity. Honda builds the hardware on both sides and feeds it with direct current (DC).

Honda says these units are the first to put the inverter and coil in one package. That lowers the parts count and the amount of roadwork needed to install each unit. It also makes it easier to install them into existing roads instead of building new lanes from scratch.

Taisei supplies a fast-responding DC power system for the embedded coils. Taisei Rotec develops the construction methods to install the hardware in existing pavement without weakening the road surface.

Honda has worked on dynamic wireless power transfer since 2021 and, with its partners, has focused on this magnetic coupling road system since 2025. The company already runs Honda Charge in Japan as a separate EV charging network.

Honda also sees its upcoming electric SUV lineup as a future candidate for this charging road, once the system is proven on the commercial trucks that remain the first target.

Honda's Late-2026 Test Track Will Check Durability And Safety

Before any public demo, the hardware has to prove it can survive heavy trucks. An earlier Taisei test road in Satte already showed the embedded units and pavement can carry vehicles weighing about 44,000 pounds, which matches the heavier trucks Honda wants to serve first.

A second test track at Taisei's T-FIELD/TAMURA site, planned from late 2026, turns that up. Real vehicles will put the system through 1 million wheel-load cycles at 11,000 pounds per wheel to simulate years of punishment in a shorter test.

Engineers will also measure electromagnetic-field leakage at that site. Any road that moves power into a vehicle has to pass that safety check before it opens to regular traffic.

Later trials will raise power output to as much as 150 kilowatts for large commercial vehicles. They will also check if the system can keep charging while a vehicle runs at highway speed, since power level and speed together decide whether this works for real-world trucks or only slow test vehicles.

If the durability and safety work clears, Honda and its partners plan to join the Tateyama Project, an East Nippon Expressway (NEXCO East) trial on 300 meters (about 984 feet) of the E14 Tateyama Expressway near the Kimitsu rest area in Chiba, starting in fiscal 2027. Road-installation cost and long-term maintenance still have to pencil out before anyone talks about wider use.