Canary Wharf Debuts Solar Glass Bus Shelter

April 27th, 2016 by Glenn Meyers

London commuters in the Canary Wharf business district can now enjoy waiting for buses in a new bus shelter featuring transparent solar PV glazing, which generates clean electricity.

The bus shelter was designed and developed by UK-based Polysolar Ltd in partnership with street furniture supplier Marshalls,

On its website, Marshalls states, “This installation will also constitute an upgrade in capacity and aesthetics over the previous bus shelter, retaining the weather-proofing and structural elements of standard architectural glazing.”

Building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) solutions

Architectural interest in using BIPV facades continues to gain momentum worldwide. Polysolar’s transparent BIPV skin allows for full PV building integration from façades to windows.

According to Marshalls, “The concept of discretely embedding solar technology into the fabric of structures and buildings represents a convenient and attractive means of reducing London’s carbon footprint. The Solar Bus Shelter is capable of generating more than 2000 kWhours per year, enough electricity to power the average London home – so adoption of this exciting technology can make a significant contribution to London’s sustainable future.”

Polysolar states the key advantage of BIPV comes from the cost of installation being offset by the production of renewable energy. This kind of free-electricity system provides a welcome alternative to developers and municipalities wishing to leave a clean energy footprint.

As reported by BusinessGreen, the project was commissioned by Canary Wharf Group after Polysolar emerged last year as one of the winners in the property giant’s Cognicity Challenge smart cities competition.

Hamish Watson, founder and CEO of Polysolar, indicated the company hopes to deploy similar bus shelters across London. “The solar bus shelter provides not just demonstration of the functionality, performance and aesthetics of our PV glass but represents an important application innovation,” he said. “Using our solar PV glazing across London’s transport sector, in things like bus shelters, EV charging canopies, walkways and bike parks, could have a significant impact on the city’s emissions, without compromising its environment, architecture or budgets.”

Polysolar said it was continuing to work with Canary Wharf and hoped to incorporate its solar cells into the facades of offices and residential developments on the site.

Polysolar chief technology officer Joanna Slota-Newson said building integrated solar PV technologies have the potential to make solar power cost competitive, as deployments remove the need for alternative building materials.

“Key requirements to enable wider adoption of solar energy are value for money without subsidy, and attractive architectural aesthetics,” she said. “Our transparent solar glass meets both these needs through multi-functionality: the solar panel becomes part of the structure itself, looks great and also generates energy efficiently.”

Images via Shutterstock and Polysolar









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