Suitable lorries for the pass
Will the Brenner Pass become the first European corridor with electric HGVs? The Brenner Pass in the Eastern Alps, at an altitude of 1,370 m, isn’t only a bottleneck on the border between Italy and Austria, but is also an environmental problem. To reduce emissions there, Gruber Logistics relies on a mix of drives that now includes e-trucks.
The Brenner corridor, one of the main routes between Italy and Central Europe, is a hot topic not only on account of block handling on the Austrian side. The increasing volume of traffic on the route puts a strain on its infrastructure and increases the pollution of the immediate environment.
Although the firm Gruber Logistics has already shifted 40% of its freight transport to the railways in the modal split in the meantime, it’s now also testing alternative drives for its lorries on the roads there.
Bio-diesel, bio-LNG, e-lorries
Gruber Logistics has teamed up with Volvo to launch a first goods haulage service with e-trucks on the route. Group CEO Martin Gruber elaborated on the spectrum of activities that includes diesel vehicles that produce 12% less emissions than other vehicles.
“We don’t rely on one single solution. We regularly use bio-diesel lorries which reduce emissions by 60% and bio-LNG vehicles that cut them by about 90%,” Gruber stated. Now the company is adding electric vehicles to its fleet on this route, which represents “a potentially scalable zero-emission solution,” as Martin Gruber put it.
As e-vehicles available today have limited ranges, Gruber Logistics’ services combine vehicles, drivers and trailers. The start of the trials was attended by the province of Bolzano’s councillor for mobility and infrastructure, Daniel Alfreider – testimony to a common purpose.