The Cranbrook Guardian: Another BC City Unveils an Electric Vehicle

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Another BC City Unveils an Electric Vehicle

Direct from the Maple Ridge Municipal News:
http://www.mapleridge.ca/EN/main/municipal/media/media/archives/dmr_news-release_electric-truck.html

The District of Maple Ridge unveiled a fully electric truck as part of the celebration of Public Works Week. This new 'Zero Emission Vehicle' was built by George Veltin with the assistance of his colleagues at the Operations Centre garage.

From the outside, the vehicle looks like any of the GM Sonoma Extended Cab trucks that are part of the District Fleet. The only difference is some new decals that herald this as our first 'Zero Emission Vehicle.'
George stripped the old V-6 motor and automatic transmission out of the Sonoma and installed thirty-two 200 amp lithium ion batteries and a 96 volt three phase motor and a new transmission into the truck. The range of the truck is 100 kilometres on a charge, and the truck's speed can get up to 80 kilometres per hour. The cost to recharge the vehicle is estimated at $1.30.

The District of Maple Ridge Vision 2025 document talks about our community striving to be one of the most sustainable communities in the world. The Vision talks about working towards carbon neutrality and the use of leading edge 'environmental technologies.' This vehicle represents a significant step towards this Vision. This project grew out of research done by a District staff member on the feasibility of converting their family vehicle to electric power based on the increasing cost of gasoline. When they shared their research and ideas with colleagues at work, the team realized that the concept held enormous potential and represented a significant opportunity to test the economics of the technology to improve the carbon footprint of the District.
Mayor Daykin noted, "Council members had a chance to look at the work done by George and his co-workers first-hand at a function at our Operations Centre on May 19. What's impressive is that from the outside the truck looks like any similar vehicle on the road. When you pop the hood, or tip back the bed of the truck you can see how the crew has managed to incorporate all of the battery systems and engine seamlessly into the truck."

He continued, "The lessons that we learn from the conversion of this vehicle and monitoring it in everyday use are going to become important as fuel prices continue to rise and electric vehicles become more widely available. Maple Ridge will have expertise and knowledge that will help us to make solid choices as we look at the economic and environmental costs of operating our fleet of vehicles."

This vehicle will be on display throughout the summer at community events.
Electric truck, under the hood