Cummins Inc. has begun delivering eight Cummins-powered all-electric vehicles to the United States Postal Service (USPS). The fully electric Cummins PowerDrive equipped vans are expected to eliminate vehicle emissions and reduce fuel and maintenance costs.
The pilot program, made possible by a grant from the California Air Resources Board to the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) and administered by CALSTART, will place the zero-emission vehicles in Fresno and Stockton. Cummins also will provide operator training, vehicle support and data collection to support the program.
The eight Cummins-powered vans will be in service by March 31. The vans have an all-electric range up to 85 miles with a full load on urban drive cycles typical of USPS collection vehicles. The direct drive architecture provides improved performance over the gasoline-powered version in critical areas of power and efficiency. The vans use the same charging system as passenger electric vehicles (SAE J1772 Level 2) and can reach a full charge in about eight hours, making overnight charging a viable option, according to Cummins.
In 2017, Cummins announced its commitment to invest $500 million in electrification across many applications, markets and regions over a period of three years. The 200 engineers involved in Cummins’ Electrified Power business are solely focused on inventing electrified power solutions for its customers. In 2018, the company announced partnerships and collaborations with on- and off-highway OEMs who are working on electrification solutions in products ranging from bus to medium duty trucks, light commercial vehicles, excavators and drayage trucks.
