The parcel logistics company DPD wants to switch completely to electric drives in Switzerland. This includes not only the use of electrically powered delivery vans to pick up the parcels from the sender and deliver them to the recipient. The company also wants to complete the longer routes in Switzerland electrically in the future. DPD has been handling transalpine distribution traffic without emissions since February 2023.

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Between the depot in Giubiasco in Ticino and the branch offices in German-speaking Switzerland on the northern side of the Alps, DPD Switzerland uses electrically powered trucks and rail. The move away from diesel in transalpine distribution transport is an important contribution for the company on the way to fossil-free parcel delivery throughout Switzerland, DPD says.

600 kilometre range

The trucks are made by Designwerk Produkts in Winterthur. The tricks have batteries with a capacity of 900 kilowatt hours. This gives them an average range of about 600 kilometres. "The use of e-trucks on the Gotthard axis was considered unrealistic until a few years ago. We are all the more pleased that the changeover has now been successful. For us it is an important step towards emission-free parcel delivery, but also a contribution to the protection of the Alps," emphasises Ville Heimgartner, Senior Innovation Project & Sustainability Manager at DPD Switzerland.

Driving quietly through the Alpine valleys

After all, the company saves nine tonnes of CO2 per truck per year. In addition, the electric trucks with their total weight of up to 38 tonnes including trailer are almost silent on the road. They thus reduce the noise pollution in the Alpine valleys caused by road traffic - a real paradigm shift almost three decades after the Alpine Initiative was adopted.

Complete changeover by 2030

DPD currently has six electron trucks in operation throughout Switzerland - in addition to the electric transporters for the last mile to the customer. This means that DPD Switzerland has already electrified 15 per cent of its fleet of around 850 vehicles. This should make it no problem to achieve the envisaged target of 20 per cent electromobility by the end of this year.

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By 2030 the entire DPD fleet should then be emission-free and consist of 90 per cent e-vehicles. The remaining vehicles will probably have alternative emission-free drives. DPD then wants to use these for very long tours. This alone will enable the parcel service provider to achieve its goal of reducing total CO2 emissions by 75 per cent by 2030 compared to emissions in 2020. (su/mfo)