First US Built Electric Truck Now in Production

The United States is slowly but surely moving towards electrification so this type of news are expected to become a common thing in the next few years. The City of Santa Monica announced it has purchased the first ZeroTruck all-electric medium duty truck that will be equipped with a Scelzi utility body.

"This truck meets the needs of our Water Division and the goals of our Sustainable City Plan to reduce emissions and reduce our use of petroleum. A zero emission medium-duty truck is something that has never been available to us until now," Fleet Superintendant Rick Sikes stated.

The truck is based on the Isuzu N series and is currently the only electric truck built in the United States and available locally this year. It boasts an automated transmission and is powered by a lithium batteries that could provide a range of up to 100 miles in highway cycle. Additionally, it also features an onboard battery charger connected to the UQM PowerPhase 100 electric unit.

Manufactured by Electrorides, a company based in Southern California, the truck obviously incorporates a number of technologies aimed at preserving battery energy, including regenerative braking systems.

"The vehicle is a realistic solution for fleets to go 'zero emission' and will be used for evaluation and demonstration to other state and local governments who are expected to continue to reduce emissions with the number one choice, electric. By encouraging fleets to go zero-emission with future vehicle purchases makes sense and we commend the SCAQMD and Santa Monica for taking leadership positions with the plug-in electric/zero emission approach," Electrorides CEO Tedd Abramson said.