Commercial vehicle electrification will likely loom large in the new $2 trillion-plus infrastructure bill Congress is hashing out, though experts in the industry admit they only have a small fraction of the complex picture figured out. At the top of the list are regulations, incentives and charging infrastructure, which a panel of trucking industry experts discussed in a March 25 webinar called “Learning from Leaders for a More Sustainable Fleet,” held by ACT News.
While the path to sustainability is still one worth taking, the big problem in the near term Drew Cullen, senior vice president of fuels and facility services for Penske Transportation Solutions, found is that fleets must take on a lot of risk when purchasing battery-electric trucks, while the reward is uncertain. Penske should know, as the logistics company operates 100 Classes 1-8 BEVs and has installed a DC fast charging network in Southern California. As always the goal is continuous improvement and trying to find ways to” do the work of 12 trucks with 10 trucks.”
