Charging Ahead

The stage is being set for the arrival of electric delivery trucks

- Matthew Flynn

According to the EPA, the transportation sector became the top source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2017, accounting for 28.9 percent of such pollution. While some of the emissions come from personal transportation, a large percentage is the result of diesel-burning trucks that are a vital part of the supply chain. With states such as California imposing stricter regulations on GHG emissions, trucking companies are beginning to explore moving away from diesel engines and to electric trucks. In addition to staying in compliance with looming regulations, companies are seeing the potential for cutting costs by turning to electric trucks. According to a Trucks. com article, repairs often leave diesel trucks out of commission for days at a time as lost revenue multiplies. On the other hand, those repairing electric trucks, “will manage over-the-air software updates and plug and unplug parts like a sophisticated Lego set.”

Electric Truck OEMs

As trucking companies are considering fleets of electric trucks, manufacturers are developing heavy-duty electric vehicles that can travel the distances and support the weight necessary to be used for shipping. Just as there is a much more publicized space race among tech billionaires, there is also a race among auto manufacturers to be the first to provide electric big rig trucks to the North American market.