Taiwan’s Gogoro announces traffic light battery backup system with Far EasTone

台灣 Gogoro 宣布與遠傳電信合作交通號誌不斷電系統

Smart traffic signals powered by Gogoro batteries can operate for 3.5 hours during power outages

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Electric two-wheeler maker and swappable battery infrastructure provider Gogoro unveiled a smart traffic signal uninterruptible power system (UPS) that was developed in conjunction with telecommunications company Far EasTone on Tuesday (March 22).

The smart traffic light was developed to maintain traffic safety by eliminating interruptions during power outages, Gogoro said. Already in testing, it demonstrated success during a blackout on March 3 by enabling traffic lights to stay on for two hours until power was restored.

The traffic signal is equipped with two swappable Gogoro smart batteries that can provide power for up to 3.5 hours and is connected to Far EasTone’s UPS monitoring platform, which performs real-time monitoring and gives power outage alerts, according to Gogoro. In the event that a power outage lasts longer than 3.5 hours, maintenance teams can switch out depleted batteries for charged ones to extend the service time of the smart traffic lights.

Gogoro and Far EasTone are currently working with the Taipei City Government to commercially deploy the smart traffic signal UPS. They are also in discussions with other city and county governments around the country to introduce the solution, said Gogoro.

“Gogoro is best known for our industry-leading urban battery swapping ecosystem for two-wheel vehicles, but we are really beginning to see the broad potential that portable, swappable power has in urban environments like traffic signal backup, parking meters, and streetlights,” said Gogoro founder and CEO Horace Luke (陸學森).

“The Gogoro-powered smart traffic signal UPS we developed with Far EasTone is another practical example of how portable power is enabling a new phase of urban management for cities to become smarter and more connected,” Luke added.

Gogoro has been developing other uses for older battery packs from scooters that no longer hold enough charge before they need to be recycled. The company announced last December that it is working with EcoLumina on deploying smart parking meters powered by Gogoro’s swappable batteries and aims to have 6,000 of them installed around the country by year’s end.