UPS will work with partner Workhorse, a battery-electric transportation technology company, to develop and deploy a fleet of 50 custom-built plug-in electric delivery trucks with zero emissions.
The goal is to make trucks that cost as much to buy as do traditional fuel-based delivery vehicles — even without taking into account subsidies. The Workhorse-designed vehicles will be all-electric, and are designed to run on a single charge throughout a normal delivery day and then charge back up overnight.
Workhorse says they'll have a 100-mile range, which is a good fit for in-city routes, and the trucks will first enter testing in urban areas in various parts of the U.S., including Atlanta, Dallas and LA. The test will lead to fine-tuning, which will lead to a larger fleet deployment targeting 2019.
Source: TechCrunch
Also at The Verge, Reuters and Cincinnati.com
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday February 26 2018, @03:26AM (1 child)
Not everyone lives in suburban/rural areas.
Here are a few examples:
Millions live and work within a 50 mile radius of this UPS distribution center [google.com]
At least a million people live/work within a 50 mile radius of this UPS distribution center [google.com].
At least 5% of the US population lives or works within 50 miles of this UPS distribution center [google.com].
What's more, those are not the only UPS distribution hubs in those areas. As such, a vehicle with a 100 mile range seems perfectly reasonable for those areas, IMHO.
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday February 26 2018, @04:22AM
Obviously, UPS doesn't know where their vehicles go. No, sir. The company that saves in all kind of ways from planning their routes has no idea at all about when the trucks will run out of electricity.
Soylentils don't read the article, not even the summary saying "the trucks will first enter testing in urban areas in various parts of the U.S., including Atlanta, Dallas and LA." UPS must know where the trucks already fit and probably already know how much savings to expect. They just want to confirm them.
But no, Soylentils know UPS is going to use them for long routes and fail.