London (CNN Business) Trucks are guzzling ever more diesel, polluting towns and cities and fueling climate change. Germany thinks it may have found the answer by using overhead lines to power big rigs.

A system that allows trucks to draw electric power from overhead cables went into operation on 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) of the autobahn on Tuesday, according to the German government.

It's the first such test on a public road in Germany.

Siemens SIEGY Developed by, the system allows big rigs with special equipment mounted on their roofs to connect to electrified lines while traveling at speeds of up to 90 kilometers per hour (56 miles per hour).

The trucks run on electric motors when connected to the overhead lines, and a hybrid system when they return to a traditional road. Sensors detect when the overhead wires are available.

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