UPS to deploy 100 fully electric vehicles in California

UPS has announced the rollout of 100 fully electric commercial vehicles across California in theUSA which it claimed is one of the single largest deployments of zero emission vehicles in the

The electric trucks are expected reduce the consumption of conventional motor fuel byapproximately 126,000 gallons per year with additional benefits including carbon emissions andnoise. The vehicles have a range of up to 75 miles and will mainly effect deliveries to Californiancustomers in Sacramento, San Bernardino, Ceres, Fresno and Bakersfield.

The vehicles were manufactured in Stockton, the fourth largest city in California’s CentralValley region, by Electric Vehicles International (EVI). The purchase of these vehicles from EVI isalso providing new jobs and revenue to the state in addition to improving air quality, UPSstressed.

California Governor Jerry Brown commented: “These all-electric vehicles remind us thatCalifornia continues to be a dynamic centre of innovation. These trucks were built here, they’ll bedriven here and they’re already changing the way business is done here – cutting emissions andeliminating the need for tanker trucks worth of fossil fuels.”

“We currently operate more than 2,500 alternative fuel vehicles worldwide with a variety ofhybrid, electric and natural gas technologies, making UPS the leader in logistics sustainability,”Myron Gray, president of UPS US operations for UPS, said. “We use our technology and logisticsexpertise to reduce emissions around the world and help test new automotive technologies.”

Numerous regional authorities have been involved in the California project. These include theGovernor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, California Air Resources Board, CaliforniaEnergy Commission, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, South Coast Air Quality ManagementDistrict, San Joaquin Air Pollution Control District and Sacramento Air Quality ManagementDistrict.

“EPA’s funding of these electric delivery trucks highlights our commitment to the rapiddeployment of electric vehicles as a means of cleaning the air, creating jobs and spurringinnovation,” Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest, added.“California’s communities will benefit from both the local manufacturing of these UPS electrictrucks and from the resulting elimination of harmful diesel emissions.”