Competitor Watch

DPD is to trial ‘the world's first’ purpose-built, fully electric 16-tonne delivery truck in London early next year, as it accelerates its zero-emission delivery plans.

Manufactured by Scandinavian electric vehicle (EV) start-up Volta Trucks, the Volta Zero vehicle has been designed to deliver parcels and freight in inner-city locations where air quality and noise pollution challenges are at their worst.

The trial will take place in central London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), where DPD opened the UK's first all-electric parcel depot in October 2018.

Last month, DPD announced it has exceeded its own 2020 target for 10 per cent of its van fleet to be zero emission, electric vehicles (EVs), five months ahead of schedule.

As a result, DPD now has the biggest, greenest delivery fleet in the UK. At the start of 2020, DPD had just over 130 EVs on the road and the rapid rise to becoming the most sustainable parcel delivery company in the UK has created enormous benefits already.

We’ve had some great feedback so far about our own EV trials, which are currently underway in partnership with London Electric Vehicle Company (LEVC).

Colleagues have been trialling the new LEVC VN5 prototype electric van, which is based on a typical London taxi cab, for parcel and letter deliveries. The 2.9 tonne small van has a similar load capacity to a typical Royal Mail van and is designed to operate at lengthy distances on a stop and start basis, comparable to a typical postal round. Read more in August’s Courier, out next week.