THE FAILURE OF ELECTRIC SEMI TRUCKS

National Review

 

The Failure of Electric Semi Trucks

By DOMINIC PINO

January 3, 2024 2:02 PM

 

Sierra Dawn McClain of the Wall Street Journal rode along with a California truck driver in an electric big rig. Surprise: Electric trucks are worse than diesel trucks.

 

Here are some of the details of how electric trucks come up short:

 

McClain writes that the truck she rode in with driver Ariel Ramos was “out of commission for about a month while the manufacturer replaced its battery, which was recalled because of a fire risk.”

 

The fully functional battery still pales in comparison to a diesel-powered truck. Ramos could make only two hauls in a day, and he said he could make six in a diesel truck.

 

On charging:

 

It took an hour to charge from 54 percent to 90 percent, and an hour and 35 minutes to charge from 25 percent to 93 percent.

 

“A diesel semi can fuel up in 15 minutes and then drive 1,000 miles—a round trip from Los Angeles to Reno, Nev.—before needing to refuel. Making the same trip, Mr. Ramos’s electric truck would have to make six recharging stops of at least 90 minutes each,” McClain writes.

 

It’s hard to fit the truck in some charging stations, since many are in store parking lots and are intended for cars.

 

Electric trucks are much heavier than diesel trucks, so for now the trucking company is using them only to ship lighter products.

 

The trucking company estimated that it made $310 less than it would have if it had used a diesel truck the day McClain rode along. To compensate, it added a surcharge for the delivery.

 

Ramos gets paid hourly, plus a commission for each delivery. Since he can make fewer deliveries in an electric truck, he estimated that he’d make $400 less per month.

 

To recap, electric trucks take longer to make fewer deliveries of fewer goods at a higher price. And California has only just started to phase in the mandates.