A New Era of Electric Trucks Set to Begin in California

The first deliveries of a new mid-sized electric truck have begun throughout California. The first RIZON's new Class 4-5 battery-electric cabover trucks, engineered by the Daimler Truck Group, will “revolutionize urban delivery applications by driving both economic and environmental sustainability,” says its U.S. distributor Velocity EV.

Boosting a range of up to 160 miles on a single charge, RIZON trucks support both cost-effective level 2 AC charging and DC fast charging. Medium (M) and Long (L) range battery configurations provide fleet operators with the flexibility to choose the best price-to-range option for their typical routes.

The vehicles are also outfitted with an active safety system and a four-stage regenerative braking system, enabling drivers to easily adjust it for energy conservation. This adjustment helps extend both brake life and driving range.

“The shift to electrification is typically a large undertaking for fleets,” said Alex Voets, General Manager of Velocity EV. “But our customers are pleased the RIZON Trucks can use inexpensive charging hardware and are finding the trucks are easy to operate. It’s great to see fleets deploying their first RIZON trucks.”

How the EVs will be used

The initial rollout of RIZON trucks in California includes a variety of sustainable transportation solutions:

• LA Sanitation & Environment (LASAN): As the lead agency for the City’s environmental programs and initiatives, LASAN is deploying seven e18L RIZON trucks with stake bed bodies to facilitate the delivery of home trash bins to Los Angeles residents.
• Goodwill Industries of San Diego County: Supporting its Southern California donation centers and thrift stores, Goodwill is integrating an e18L RIZON dry van box truck into its fleet to bolster logistics efficiency.
• Diamond Environmental: Southern California-based equipment rental and onsite services company, Diamond Environmental, is deploying four e18L RIZON trucks to deliver and service portable restrooms, enhancing efficiency and reducing emissions in the communities it serves.
• Ecorecycling: To transport thousands of pounds of clothing and book donations from the local community to its sorting warehouse, Ecorecycling is deploying three e18L RIZON dry van trucks into its Northern California routes.
• Velocity Truck Rental & Leasing: To provide California businesses with accessible zero-emission commercial vehicle solutions, Velocity has five e18L RIZON box trucks available for immediate rental or lease.

Incentives for going electric

RIZON trucks purchased in California are eligible for a base voucher of $60,000 per vehicle through the California Air Resource Board’s (CARB) Hybrid and Zero-Emission Truck and Bus Voucher Incentive Project (HVIP). This initiative further incentivizes the transition to sustainable transportation solutions. To participate in the HVIP voucher program, fleet operators must work with an HVIP-approved dealer that submits the voucher request on the fleet's behalf for the RIZON truck. RIZON is available from California Truck Centers and Velocity Truck Centers, which are both HVIP-approved dealers.

The CARB certification designates all four RIZON models – e16M, e16L, e18M, and e18L – as compliant under the Advanced Clean Fleets rule that mandates 50% of overall state, local, and municipal vehicle purchases be zero-emissions starting January 1, 2024.