Logistics and transportation company Ryder System Inc. will add 4,000 additional electric vans to its lease and rental fleet through 2025, tapping General Motors (GM)’s BrightDrop unit to provide the vehicles.
The news follows last week’s decision by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to allow California to require that about half the trucks sold in that state must be all-electric by 2035. The decision could be a major boost for the electric vehicle (EV) industry since similar laws are already on the books in New York, New Jersey, Washington, Oregon, Massachusetts, and Vermont.
Ryder said its expanded offering will enable customers to test and broaden their EV footprint, enhance the driver experience, and accelerate their sustainability initiatives.
The company will order its first 200 units this year, deploying them to its rental fleets in California, Dallas-Fort Worth, and New York City. The specific vehicles will be the BrightDrop Zevo 600 and Zevo 400 electric van designs. Both models—named for their capacity in cubic feet—have a range of up to 250 miles on a full charge, and can support a payload of about 2,000 to 3,400 lbs.
The contract is the latest large order for Palo Alto, California-based BrightDrop, which has also inked purchases in 2023 from Purolator Inc., in 2022 from FedEx Corp., and in 2021 from Merchants Fleet.
