Volvo LIGHTS Project Deploys Final VNR Electric Trucks – Fuel Smarts

Rockview Farms, a family-owned dairy business in Southern California, deployed two Volvo VNR Electric trucks to support farm-to-customer deliveries of local California milk. Rockview Farms’ Volvo VNR Electric trucks are the final two trucks to be funded through the Volvo LIGHTS project. 

According to a statement, the battery-electric trucks will help reduce noise and emissions in the neighborhoods surrounding Rockview Farms’ facility in Downey, California, which is the central hub for deliveries throughout the greater Los Angeles area. 

Volvo Trucks deployed its first Class 8 Volvo VNR Electric trucks to fleet operators in 2019 as part of the Volvo LIGHTS project. Over the next several years, Volvo Trucks North America, South Coast Air Quality Management District, and 12 other organizations designed and implemented a blueprint for the complete ecosystem needed to successfully deploy commercial battery-electric freight trucks, eventually deploying about 30 of these vehicles in California’s South Coast Air Basin.  

The Volvo VNR Electric model produces zero-tailpipe emissions and reduces heat, noise, and vibrations. TEC Equipment of La Mirada, a Volvo Trucks Certified Electric Vehicle Dealer, provides ongoing training to Rockview Farms drivers to help them understand how to optimize the range of the Volvo VNR Electric, including how to leverage regenerative braking benefits to add power back to the battery. 

The dealership also utilized a route planning tool, the Electric Performance Generator to help Rockview Farms evaluate the routes that were best suited for its Volvo VNR Electric trucks, taking into consideration the vehicle configuration and battery capacity, environmental factors such as terrain and ambient temperature, and specific route details, including traffic patterns.

In addition to supplying grocery stores in Southern California, the battery-electric trucks supply cruise ships at the Port of Long Beach four times a week. Rockview Farms is currently evaluating the trucks to see how they perform on their current routes and has already identified 10 additional local routes that could be a good fit for electrification.  

Rockview Farms is building out high-powered charging infrastructure at its Downey facility to support the battery-electric Volvo VNR Electric trucks with funding from Southern California Edison’s Charge Ready Transport program. Once complete, the infrastructure will also charge the batteries for its electric transport refrigeration units. The facility is currently utilizing temporary 75kW chargers to support the Volvo VNR Electric trucks and two planned electric yard trucks.