The 38-vehicle fleet of battery-electric Freightliner eCascadias and eM2s have surpassed 500,000 miles in real-world operation by Freightliner customers, who include some of the largest private and for-hire fleets in North America.

The Freightliner Electric Innovation and Customer Experience (CX) Fleets consist of pre-series production battery-electric medium- and heavy-duty trucks, and are used to test integration of the technology into large-scale fleet operations while providing real-time feedback and data to help shape the future of CO₂-neutral transportation.

“The more miles our trucks operate in real-world operations, the more knowledge we gain, and the more experience our customers have with our pre-production trucks is integral to Freightliner’s approach to electrifying the trucking market”,

said Richard Howard, senior vice president, on-highway sales and marketing for Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA). “There are no shortcuts to delivering safe, reliable, dependable trucks. Real customers, running real freight against the rigors of multiple scenarios is the only path to an electric future. Through our process of co-creation, and along with our fantastic customers, Freightliner is delivering the future, mile by mile, every day.”

Announced in 2018 and beginning operation in 2019, the Freightliner Electric Innovation Fleet includes 30 battery-electric trucks in operation by NFI and Penske Truck Leasing and its customers. The fleet is supported by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (South Coast AQMD) which focuses on improving air quality in the South Coast Basin of Southern California and partially funded the project. All trucks in the fleet operate in the South Coast Basin and are doing real work in applications ranging from port drayage, to regional and local delivery, to food distribution, to parcel delivery.

Customer participants in the Freightliner Electric Innovation Fleet include:

• NFI
• Penske Logistics
• Penske Truck Leasing, and its customers, including:
  • • Black Horse Carriers Inc.
    • Core-Mark
    • Costco Wholesalers
    • Fastenal
    • Iron Mountain Inc.
    • KeHE Distributors
    • Mondolez International Inc.
    • Temco Logistics
    • United Parcel Service
    • US Foods

Announced in early 2020 and beginning operation later the same year, the Freightliner CX Fleet includes eight battery-electric trucks and brings more customers into the co-creation process. Freightliner CX Fleet participants are members of the Freightliner Electric Vehicle Council, a group of customers working with Freightliner to identify and address all potential hurdles to large-scale fleet deployment. The Freightliner CX Fleet is supported in part by both South Coast AQMD and by Bay Area Air Quality Management District (Bay Area AQMD), which focuses on improving air quality in the nine-county Bay Area.

Customer participants in the Freightliner CX Fleet include:

• J.B. Hunt Transport Service Inc.
• Knight-Swift Transportation
• Ryder Systems
• Schneider National Inc.
• Sysco Corp.
• Velocity Truck Rental & Leasing

Freightliner electric vehicles include the eCascadia, a Class 8 tractor designed for local and regional distribution and drayage and the eM2, a Class 6/7 truck designed for local distribution, pickup and delivery, food and beverage delivery, and last-mile logistics applications. The start of series production for both trucks begins in 2022.

Source: Freightliner Trucks