As more and more leaders in the industry race to enter the electric semi truck market, Volvo has announced the deployment of its first pilot VNR Electric Truck in California.
The truck is operating at Volvo Trucks North America TEC Equipment dealership in Fontana, California, transporting parts between dealerships in Fontana and La Mirada.
Plans for the Volvo VNR Truck were announced in 2018. The zero-admissions vehicle “represents the future of regional haul. This truck does not compromise, delivering productivity and efficiency with quality and long-haul amenities” according to Volvo.
Suggestions and comments from 500 real-world truck drivers were taken into consideration when designing the interior of the truck.
Volvo VNR Electric Trucks are a part of LIGHTS (Low Impact Green Heavy Transport Solutions) a partnership between Volvo, California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District and industry leaders in transportation and electrical charging infrastructure.
With the first VNR Electric Truck on the road, Volvo is taking steps towards their plan to commercialize the truck.
Starting in 2021, businesses in California will begin to lease models of the electric truck to evaluate them for their fleets. Later this summer, NFI Industries and Dependable Supply Chain Services, will test the pilot Volvo VNR Electric trucks for full operations in their regional routes.
For industry leaders, the future of hauling is in electric trucks. Volvo will be competing with companies like Tesla and Nikola as they begin to release their electric semi trucks as well.