Lion echoed that concern, saying the company now waits to deliver vehicles if customers don't have the capability to charge them. “The truck is going to show up and it’s going to stay parked for another six months and that’s not good for anybody," he said. Burak said he had seen scenarios where a truck was delivered within five months, but it took much longer for customers and utility companies to get the necessary charging infrastructure in place. Yet Burak and others recognized that some factors outside of their control could hinder that growth. "Twenty years from now it’s going to be a very different landscape with respect to electric transportation," said Kyle Burak, director of energy storage at BYD. The tone of the day was pro-electric, with multiple presenters speaking optimistically about its potential in a variety of industries. Permission granted by Recology Infrastructure investments GreenWaste is also running a BYD Generation 1 side-loader in Palo Alto, California and could convert its entire local fleet in the coming years. Recology is now running two BYD trucks for commercial collection in Seattle following a previous test in San Francisco. Mack previously announced an LR pilot with Republic Services in North Carolina. The Los Angeles Bureau of Sanitation recently pledged to make its whole fleet electric by 2035, following tests with various companies. waste industry in recent years, but more and more signs point to the future being electric. Compressed natural gas (CNG), biodiesel, dimethyl ether, hydrogen and other options have all been on the table at one time or another.ĬNG in particular has caught on with the U.S. The agency has been eyeing alternative fleet technology for many years – including a more recent test with Chinese company BYD that didn't move ahead – and has decided against pursuing other options before due to infrastructure and cost factors. He already sees multiple advantages such as a quiet ride and maintenance expenses that are "little to none." After-treatment issues on current diesel engines have been considered "a nightmare," accounting for an estimated 15% of DSNY's fleet downtime. As a result, the truck was sent back to Mack and will return to New York with a larger battery next month for an Earth Day debut.Īs part of another city goal to reduce fleet emissions 80% by 2035, DSNY is also piloting 12 units from Effenco that reduce engine use on existing trucks during idling, with 14 more on the way.ĭepending on results with the Mack pilot, DiRico said he could potentially move to buy anywhere from five to 25 electric trucks as soon as the FY22 budget cycle, with the posibility to scale up further within the agency's standard purchase of 400 trucks per year if successful. DSNY operates a fleet of 6,051 vehicles, including 2,346 collection trucks and multiple other heavy duty varieties. But its required two-hour recharging time is too long because trucks could be running for up to 12 hours during snowstorms and the plow's weight is also expected to reduce battery life.
This means they are heavier and must run longer than what most other industry operators need.Īccording to DiRico, a newly received Mack LR rear-load (said to be the first of its kind in the U.S.) performed "very well" on a recent six-hour test route. That is especially true for DSNY, because its 72,000-pound collection vehicles also plow snow. “We have a really, really tall task that we’re faced with," he added in reference to his city's goal of 100% fleet electrification by 2040. “What we’re doing here today in the heavy duty side is much more difficult than anything GM or Ford has done in the past because of all the variations," said Rocco DiRico, deputy commissioner of support services for New York's Department of Sanitation (DSNY). Permission granted by Matt Grondin From coast to coast