By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter

Seoul City plans to operate buses powered by electricity supplied from equipment planted in road surfaces from 2011.

The "On Line Electric Vehicle (OLEV)" has been developed by the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).

Seoul City signed a memorandum of understanding with KAIST for the project, Tuesday. The electric vehicles will be produced by October and test-operated on a 2.2-kilometer Seoul Grand Park shuttle route from November.

The city will continue test-driving in the areas around Sangam-dong, Seoul, next year and introduce the bus to bus-only lanes in broader areas in 2011.

The OLEV gets its power supply from an electric facility laid underground, without rails or surface power lines, and it can share the road with other vehicles as well.

It is 30-90 percent cheaper to make and maintain than existing electric buses and does not emit any air polluting substances.

The city plans to replace all cars, buses and taxis with electric or hybrid cars and expand charging stations by 2020.

meeyoo@koreatimes.co.kr