This week, Amazon announced the company will start testing its current fleet of cartoonish-looking EVs in San Francisco, adding to the growing number of clean-energy delivery cars and public transport vehicles crisscrossing our streets.
The age of fossil-fuel-free energy is upon us. (And if anything: the United States and other developed countries in the world are making massive, ahead-of-schedule strides to banning and replacing all ICE vehicles in the next decade or two.) Adding to the number of silent automobiles driving through San Francisco will be Amazon's new electric delivery vehicles, designed and produced by Michigan-headquartered automaker Rivian.
The Rivian Adventure Network is bringing DC fast charging to routes across the US and Canada — like along California’s Hwy 395 — with over 3,500 fast chargers at more than 600 sites by end of 2023. Visit our blog for details on all our charging solutions. https://t.co/nKBAZyeN7k pic.twitter.com/LuoTpgRATb
— Rivian (@Rivian) March 18, 2021
"As we continue to grow and invest in California, we want to do so responsibly, so we're excited for customers in the Bay area to see these vehicles cruising through their neighborhoods," Ross Rachey, director of Amazon's Global Fleet and Products, said in a statement, per a press release.
This news, as well, comes after a recent $200M investment into a new delivery station in SF—signaling Amazon’s push to significantly increase deliveries in the city.
"From what we’ve seen, this is one of the fastest modern commercial electrification programs, and we’re incredibly proud of that,” adds Rachey. Though the exact number around how many of these vehicles will be navigating the city remains unmentioned, the e-commerce giant plans to order 100,000 Rivian vans — which will range in size, with some models able to carry over 900 cubic feet of packages and drive 150 miles on a charge — and will begin operating full-time fleets of them as early as 2022.
Amazon's EV presence comes during a time where autonomous-vehicle companies, like Waymo and Cruise, are expanding their fleet of vehicles (all of which are either fully electric or EV-hybrids) to test in San Francisco.
At this rate, who knows: robotic dogs might soon drop off packages at our apartment doorsteps.
Related: Waymo Unleashes ‘Fully Driverless’ Taxis (In Phoenix Only), Elon Musk Stews With Jealous Tweets
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Image: Rivian's R1T, an all-electric pick up truck is displayed at the Amazon booth during CES 2020 at the Las Vegas Convention Center on January 7, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. CES, the world's largest annual consumer technology trade show, runs through January 10 and features about 4,500 exhibitors showing off their latest products and services to more than 170,000 attendees. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)
