Amazon has begun using electric delivery vehicles in the Rochester area, making this the first location to roll out the all-electric vans in Upstate New York.
There are more than 60 vehicles now operating out of an Amazon facility in Greece, and the company hopes to get that number to over 200 in the Rochester area by the end of this year.
It’s part of Amazon’s goal of achieving net-zero results in carbon emissions by 2040.
Mitch Karn is VP of Fleet Operations for SS Delivery Operations, which is one of Amazon’s Delivery Service Partners (DSPs) at their delivery station in Greece.
He said the new vehicles not only are cleaner, in terms of emissions, they have additional safety features.
‘Safety features that electric vans can offer that some of the regular vans can’t, and makes it safer for the driver, for the communities that they’re driving in,” said Karn, “so I think there’s a multifaceted advantage to having electric vehicles, better for the environment, better for the communities, better for the drivers.”
Those safety features includes some of the amenities you may have on your passenger car, but are not typically on commercial vehicles such as Lane Assist, forward and rear collision warnings, and heated windshields.
They also have features that help the driver keep the packages in the van secure during stops. Colder weather can reduce the range of electric cars, but Karn said that the company that makes the vans, California-based Rivian, has done testing on the new vehicles and have not run into any problems related to having these all-electric vehicles run in a colder climate.
There are now more than 5,000 of the electric vehicles on the road for Amazon in more than 500 cities and regions across the country. Amazon has a commitment to have all 100,000 delivery vehicles on the road by 2030.
