Amazon trials electric delivery vans in San Francisco

Amazon is testing its electric delivery vans, the latest expansion of the company’s custome EVs developed in partnership with Rivian Automotive, in San Francisco, US. Last month, Amazon tested the electric delivery vans in Los Angeles.

The e-commerce giant chose San Francisco as one of the initial cities to test the EV because of its great customers, unique terrain and climate. Ross Rachey, Amazon global fleet and products director, in a statement said that this is one of the fastest modern commercial electrification programs. “As we continue to grow and invest in California, we want to do it responsibly, so we are excited for customers in the Bay Area to see these vehicles cruising through their neighbourhood.”

In September 2019, Amazon backed Rivian via its $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund to purchase 100,000 EVs from the start-up as part of its ambitious push to make Amazon’s fleet run entirely on renewable energy, with each van having a range of 150 miles per charge. Amazon said it has been operating thousands of EVs worldwide, and notedly, in 2020, the company delivered more than 20 million packages using electric delivery vehicles across North America and Europe.

It has also redesigned its delivery stations by adding thousands of EV chargers. The electric delivery vans feature a boxier design, Prime branding and upgraded safety features like an advanced driver assist system and exterior cameras that give the driver a 360-degree view outside the vehicle.

Besides Amazon, other delivery companies like FedEx and UPS are also adopting EVs. Jane Lin, a professor at the University of Chicago, says efforts to carbon from transportation have largely focused on passenger vehicles. She said each commercial truck or van that goes electric has a bigger impact than a commuter’s vehicle making the switch.

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Lin emphasized that electrification is not the only way for delivery vehicles to reduce their emissions; companies could consolidate trips or use smaller vehicles, for instance, and those changes could sometimes be even better than going electric.