GRA
Well-known member
https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1116596_1912-electric-truck-take-that-tesla-semi
I've been re-reading both David Kirsch's "the Electric Vehicle and the Burden of History" and Gijs Mom's "The Electric Vehicle: Technology and Expectations in the Automobile Age", both of which go into considerable detail about the use of electric trucks. Kirsch is restricted to the U.S., while Mom covers European use as well. Given the low speeds and local use only (in the U.S., roads outside of cities were dirt and awful, so trucks were used solely for urban P&D, with trains handling long-distance), the electric truck did have some considerable value early on, and they often stayed in service at a company for decades despite their low speeds and limited range. In Germany they were also used for firetrucks, ambulances, garbage collection, mail and parcel delivery, street sweeping and sprinkling.
With the coming of WW1 and the widespread use of gasoline trucks by European and then the U.S. military, electrics remained in commercial use especially in Europe (because they didn't use gasoline, and being tethered to charging systems wouldn't be commandeered by the military).
However, the production capacity as well as the capabilities of gas trucks grew by leaps and bounds and electric truck use withered away, especially as roads got better (in the U.S. after WW1) and tires improved (electric trucks used solid rubber tires, because the pneumatics of the day couldn't handle their higher weight).
I've been re-reading both David Kirsch's "the Electric Vehicle and the Burden of History" and Gijs Mom's "The Electric Vehicle: Technology and Expectations in the Automobile Age", both of which go into considerable detail about the use of electric trucks. Kirsch is restricted to the U.S., while Mom covers European use as well. Given the low speeds and local use only (in the U.S., roads outside of cities were dirt and awful, so trucks were used solely for urban P&D, with trains handling long-distance), the electric truck did have some considerable value early on, and they often stayed in service at a company for decades despite their low speeds and limited range. In Germany they were also used for firetrucks, ambulances, garbage collection, mail and parcel delivery, street sweeping and sprinkling.
With the coming of WW1 and the widespread use of gasoline trucks by European and then the U.S. military, electrics remained in commercial use especially in Europe (because they didn't use gasoline, and being tethered to charging systems wouldn't be commandeered by the military).
However, the production capacity as well as the capabilities of gas trucks grew by leaps and bounds and electric truck use withered away, especially as roads got better (in the U.S. after WW1) and tires improved (electric trucks used solid rubber tires, because the pneumatics of the day couldn't handle their higher weight).
