Electric heavy vehicles catching on

Three launches in recent weeks give a taste of the potential for electrifying our heavy vehicle fleet.

“Changing from diesel buses and trucks to electric tackles the air quality issues of central cities, as well as reducing carbon emissions,” says Liz Yeaman, EECA’s Transport Development Manager. “It’s good news for the millions who live and work in big cities.”

The launches were all projects part-funded by the Low Emission Vehicles Contestable Fund, administered by EECA. Two projects, one with Auckland University of Technology and one with Auckland Transport, put electric buses on the road in Auckland; the third, by Waste Management Ltd, is a workshop to convert diesel trucks to electric.

Medium-sized electric trucks are expected in the market later this year. Fuso New Zealand last year announced plans to begin testing their box body eCanter on New Zealand roads in the third-quarter of this year.

“Others will follow,” Yeaman says. “Nearly 80% of all freight movements are within regions so there’s heaps of scope to go electric.”

As heavy electric vehicles are exempt from road user charges until they make up 2% of the heavy vehicle fleet, owners of trucks and buses should have a hard look at electric options for their next vehicle purchase, she says.