The Bronx will be breathing a little easier with new Volvo VNR Electric [update]

City Harvest, New York City's largest food rescue organization, has bought three all-electric Volvo VNR semi trucks to deliver food across all five boroughs, including the Bronx. The trucks produce zero tailpipe emissions and will also use battery-powered refrigeration units, so the coolers keeping food fresh won't burn fuel either. The purchase was funded by a $10 million award from the New York Clean Transportation Prizes program, aimed at cutting noise and air pollution in South Bronx neighborhoods near a busy freight corridor. These three trucks are part of a larger eight-vehicle deployment under the same program, supporting food distribution and waste hauling that moves more than 250,000 pounds of goods through the city daily.

The trucks themselves run on a 565 kWh battery (a measure of how much energy the battery can store) feeding a 340 kW motor, and can haul up to about 82,000 pounds combined weight for up to 275 miles on a charge. Charging will eventually be handled by a new public charging hub at the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center, built by MN8 Energy, with 32 fast chargers for heavy trucks plus 10 slower Level 2 chargers when it opens in 2029.

For homeowners, this doesn't come with a rebate or program to sign up for. It's a local example of heavy delivery trucks going electric, which over time can mean less diesel exhaust and noise in neighborhoods near freight routes.