When you think of the delivery business, green is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. The delivery truck drivers drive around all day and when they aren’t on the move, they may sit idle at times. The greenhouse gas emissions have to be awful.
But, United Parcel Service (UPS) is trying to lead the way to a greener way of delivering. UPS recently added 200 new hybrid-electric delivery trucks to its fleet. The company already had 50 of these trucks in place. You are probably thinking that 250 trucks aren’t much, especially considering the company has 90,000 delivery trucks. But, it is a start – in the right direction.
What keeps companies like UPS and FedEx from purchasing hybrid trucks? It seems to be the same thing that keeps many of us from purchasing hybrid cars – cost. A spokesperson for UPS said that “hybrid trucks are significantly more expensive.” How much do they consider “significantly?” Well, an electric truck costs about $10,000 more than a traditional truck, although hybrids are a bit cheaper.
While the trucks cost more initially, operation is cheaper. UPS estimates that the 200 new trucks will save about 176,000 gallons in fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1,786 metric tons.
Two years ago, UPS added an additional 167 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) delivery trucks. The trucks were used in such places as Dallas, Atlanta, Sacramento, Los Angeles, and Ontario. There were already 800 CNG trucks in the fleet. At the time, Director of Vehicle Engineering Robert Hall said, “UPS has deployed alternative fuel vehicles for more than 70 years and this CNG deployment is one more step towards the ‘greening’ of the UPS fleet.”
While UPS is leading the way, other companies are trying to catch up. Two years ago, Coca-Cola added 120 hybrid trucks to its fleet. The United States Postal Service (USPS) is working with Bright Automotive and Zap to come up with an electric van. FedEx and Environmental Defense Fund came up with a hybrid truck that gets 40% better gas mileage while emitting 96% less “particulate pollution.” However, there were only 1,800 on the road today.
Change to the trucks delivery companies use is coming, although it would appear to be a slow process at best.