Electric vehicles are going to play a role in future transportation for the private sector, but where they are also needed, possibly more so, is in the commercial delivery sector. With the majority of vehicle emissions originating from transport and delivery vehicles, having lower and zero emission alternatives will be key in reducing the overall impact automobiles have on climate change and the environment. Though companies like FedEx and the USPS are just beginning to introduce hybrid and low-emission vehicles into their delivery fleets, most companies, that rely almost entirely on daily vehicle delivery for their business, have done little to upgrade their fleets of vehicles to more fuel efficient and/or lower emissions vehicles. Even the few companies who have made efforts to improve their fleets do not have that many environmentally friendly options when it comes to relatively heavier transport vehicles…until now.
Could You Pass Me A Smith Newton?
Yesterday in Washington, D.C., Coca-Coca Enterprises, AT&T, Frito-Lay,Staples, Pacific Gas & Electric and Kansas City Power & Light each took delivery of an all-electric truck from Smith Electric Vehicles on the National Mall at a press event showcasing the new technology. The trucks, Smith Newtons, are the first all-electric commercial vehicles of their size to meet California’s zero-emission-vehicle (ZEV) standards and, though currently produced in the U.K, will soon be rolling off the production lines of a converted TWA hanger at the Kansas City Airport.
Smith Newtons get their juice from what else; Lithium-ion batteries. Their 120 kW electric engine can get a fully loaded truck (16,000+ lbs) to a speed of 50 mph and the battery capacity, combined with the regenerative braking system, allows the vehicle to travel more than 100 miles on a single charge (Coke’s trucks will actually run about 50 miles further). Given the fact that these vehicles will be used for local deliveries within city limits, the speed and range of the Smith Newton make it the ideal vehicle for such tasks.
It Always Comes Down To Cost
These vehicles sound great for companies’ environmental images and their bottom lines right? Wrong…on the latter point at least. While these vehicles, if actually deployed, may give some green PR cred to the companies that are purchasing them, it certainly isn’t going to save them any dollars in the short term. Each truck currently costs about $170,000 each which is almost triple the price of the vehicles they would be replacing. So don’t expect seeing your favorite office chairs or bubbly beverages silently arriving to a store near you anytime soon. Though the companies receiving the vehicles yesterday already have pledged some money to purchasing future vehicles from Smith Electric, most will simply have to wait for the price to come down before wide-scale implementation is even considered.
The Good: There are finally some heavier transport all-electric options coming into the marketplace and gaining some recognition amongst major corporations that depend heavily on transport as part of their business.
The Bad: The Smith Newtons are extremely expensive, so like all companies whose bottom-line comes first, large scale orders of the vehicles are unlikely until pricing comes down. The usual negatives accompanying electric vehicles (rare earth metals for batteries, shifted emissions, limited range, non-existent charging infrastructure, etc.)
The Bottom-Line: Though encouraging in some respects, and possibly a glimpse of what’s to come in the somewhat distant future, yesterday’s ceremonial delivery of six electric vehicles to six enormous companies will do little in the short term in addressing the environmental impact these companies’ fleets of vehicles have on the environment.
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