Logistics service provider (LSP) Schneider National Inc. has reached the milestone of hauling more than 1 million zero-emission miles of customer freight, the transportation powerhouse said Monday.
Schneider says it currently operates one of the largest fleets of battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in North America at the company’s Southern California Intermodal Operations Center, featuring almost 100 Freightliner eCascadias. Those trucks recharge their batteries at a charging depot about half the size of a football field, where 32 vehicles can simultaneously plug in. An eCascadia achieves an 80% charge within 90 minutes and has a typical driving range of up to approximately 220 miles, Schneider said.
The carrier’s first electric trucks began hauling customers’ freight in January. Since then, the fleet has grown to a total of 94 electric vehicles, including 92 battery electric trucks and two electric yard spotters that it added in August.
By hauling freight for customers including Goodyear and Frito-Lay North America with electric power instead of diesel, Schneider says its trucks have avoided approximately 3.3 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions – the equivalent of removing more than 330 gas-powered passenger vehicles from the road for a year.
“We are driven by our commitment to sustainability and innovation to be one of the first carriers to embrace electric as a powerful solution for hauling freight,” Schneider President and CEO Mark Rourke said in a release. “We believe in a future where clean technology helps transform the way we move goods and reduces our environmental footprint while still delivering on our promises of efficiency and reliability for customers. This milestone is just the first of many.”
Schneider’s ultimate goal is to reduce per-mile emissions by 7.5% by 2025 and 60% by 2035, and the company says it is now more than halfway to its 2025 mark.
The milestone also makes Schneider the first transportation provider to reach the million mile number, according to Freightliner’s parent company, Daimler Truck North America (DTNA). "Three years ago, we tested the Freightliner eCascadia with Schneider in real-world test applications, and now they have already delivered goods on 1 million fully electric miles with their electric fleet. This is an important milestone, not just for Schneider, but for the industry as a whole," DTNA Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing David Carson said in a release. "Not only that, but clean transportation in the form of zero emission trucks on the road brings our society closer to a better future."
