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EUROPE: All-electric ferry service set to launch in Gothenburg

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An all-electric ferry service, powered by a Volvo Penta system, is set to be launched in Gothenburg as part of the ElectriCity project.  Gothenburg’s ElectriCity partnership is a collaboration between industry, academia and local government.to test sustainable transportation systems.  Volvo Penta’s sister company Volvo Buses has already supplied electric buses for the project. The new electric-powered ferry will link both sides of the Göta River. In a statement issued on Friday (1 February) , Volva Penta said: ‘While Gothenburg’s waterways already feature ferries powered by electricity, in the form of diesel-electric engines, these operate on short routes across the river. ElectriCity’s Volvo Penta-powered electric vessel, meanwhile, will be the first fully-electric ferry in the city able to complete longer, multi-stop routes along the river, and ultimately incorporate quick charging capabilities.’ The Älvsnabben 4 will be converted into the all-electric drive by...
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Penske Truck Leasing joins CharIN

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Pennsylvania-based Penske Truck Leasing has joined the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIN). CharIN aims to promote the Combined Charging System (CCS) as the global standard for charging electric vehicles (EVs) of all types.  In a statement issued on Monday (13 August), Penske said it will take part in the group's "High Power Charging for Commercial Vehicles Task Force" (HPCCV Task Force). Penske Truck Leasing is the first in its industry to join the CharIN organization. "As a leading services provider to commercial fleets, we feel standardization around electric vehicle charging and charging stations will help accelerate the use of electric vehicles within the transportation industry," said Brian Hard, President and CEO of Penske Truck Leasing. "The interoperability of vehicle charging stations over the road is essential for commercial fleet uptime, efficiency, maintenance, and general ease of use for the industry." Penske Truck Leasing ...
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Electric Marvel

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UPS has announced it will be working with Thor Trucks to develop and test a fully-electric class 6 delivery truck in Los Angeles, California. In a statement issued yesterday (31 July), UPS said that the truck has a driving range around 100 miles (which should be sufficient for urban deliveries) and is expected to be ready for deployment later this year. As a class 6, the truck is a "medium-duty" delivery vehicle. UPS will be putting the Thor truck through its paces for about six months and, d epending on the success of the deployment, the delivery company says it "may make additional purchases of the electric vehicle". Carlton Rose, president, global fleet maintenance and engineering for UPS, commented:  “UPS believes in the future of commercial electric vehicles. We want to support the research needed to make advances and the companies developing those innovative products. “Performance is critical in our fleet. We are excited to get this v...
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The Green Mile

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The UK's Department for Transport has opened a consultation on the opportunities available to deliver goods more sustainably and make the last mile greener. In a statement issued yesterday (30 July), the DfT said that it was calling for evidence to explore how clean vehicles such as electrically powered e-vans, micro vehicles and e-cargo bikes can "provide better service to customers for cargo in comparison to light commercial vehicles". The DfT would like to hear evidence of how innovative logistics solutions such as cargo consolidation centres, shared hubs and micro-depots could help to alleviate the pressures on urban last mile deliveries. Importantly, the DfT is inviting suggestions on how the delivery industry could be incentivised to take up clean, last-mile delivery options - and it also wants to have a better understanding of the perceived barriers to switching over to a sustainable delivery model. In his foreword to the discussion document, ...
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Working for Deliveroo "works well for some individuals and very poorly for others"

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A new report has found that earning a living as a Deliveroo rider in the UK "works well for some individuals and very poorly for others". The report - published yesterday (24 July) by Frank Field, the MP who chairs the Parliamentary Work and Pensions Committee - found that: "Some Deliveroo riders earn as little as £2 or £3 an hour. Others, in even more extreme circumstances, earn nothing at all at certain times while those at the other end of the scale sometimes reach £20 an hour." In a statement posted on his website, Field also claimed that: "Across the online food delivery sector of the ‘gig economy’ as a whole, around 158,000 individuals report being paid less than the National Living Wage." Essentially, said Field, Deliveroo - and other gig economy companies - have to "strike a more just balance between flexibility and security". The report's key recommendations include the conclusion that: "Workers who prize flexibility...
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20: 0 Vision

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London's new "Vision Zero" action plan for reducing traffic-related injuries will see a new 20 miles per hour (mph) speed limit introduced on all Transport for London (TfL) roads within the Congestion Charging Zone. In a statement issued today (24 July), the office of London's Major Sadiq Khan said that the Vision Zero approach "starts from the premise that no death or serious injury on London’s roads is acceptable or inevitable". In order to get closer to a full Vision Zero ambition, the Mayor has set TfL some interim targets. According to today's statement: "By 2022, the aim is to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on London’s roads by 65% with no-one being killed on or by a bus by 2030, on the road to Vision Zero in 2041." The new speed limit proposals will play a key role in achieving these targets. According to the statement from the Mayor's office: "TfL is now proposing to make 20mph the new gene...
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Flying High: Using Drones in Urban Environments

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A new report published yesterday (23 July) by the UK-based innovation foundation Nesta has argued that making "urgent medical deliveries from hospital to hospital" could be one of the most useful and important tasks that drones could perform in UK cities. The report , "Flying High: Shaping the Future of Drones in UK Cities", examined how drones are being used in five UK city-regions: traffic incident response in the West Midlands construction and regeneration in Preston supporting the fire and rescue service in Bradford. and medical delivery in both London and also the Southampton-Isle of Wight region The medical delivery application was a particularly interesting from one. And we have also seen pilot projects in other countries which have shown that drones can perform this task admirably. The postal operator Swiss Post, for example, has used drones to transport lab samples between medical centres in Zurich, Lugano and Berne. The Nesta r...
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