On the road on quiet tires with an e-truck

Robert Weiss is a veteran. But one thing is new after all this time: the truck driver had to switch from his usual diesel to a new electric truck. We visited him at the Freight Terminal in Cologne (Germany).

At 6 o’clock in the morning, the DHL Freight terminal on the north side of Cologne, Germany, buzzes with activity. Nearly all of the 115 loading docks are occupied, employees scurry busily about, pallets upon pallets wait to be loaded into trucks. Robert Weiss is a picture of calm. At dock number nine, he’s getting everything ready for the next tour with his electric truck.

Along with the hydrogen truck “Paul”, this is the second electric truck in use at the Cologne location. Weiss is very proud to be driving it. “I was happy when my boss asked me to be the driver,” he says. “It’s an honor, after all, and a sign that he’s pleased with the job I’m doing.”

Weiss starts his workday at 5:30 a.m. Every morning he goes to dispatch to pick up the documents for his daily tour – packing slips that tell him what needs to be delivered where each day. He stays within about a 40-kilometer radius, with two tours a day in Cologne’s Ossendorf district. He knows his customers, so he’s quick to identify the pallets he’ll be delivering with his e-truck. Today he has ten destinations on the itinerary. Up until now his daily routine is basically the same as his colleagues with the diesel trucks.

That changes shortly after 6:30. Loading is complete, the dispatch papers are signed, and the tour uploaded to the scanner. The Volvo FL Electric has been plugged in all night, is fully charged and ready to go.

Battery indicator instead of fuel indicator

“Especially for the shorter-range tours, the e-truck is perfect,” says Weiss as he turns the ignition key. Instead of the rumble of the diesel engine, we hear nothing. And off he goes. Brand spanking new, freshly washed and a gleaming yellow, the truck is a real eye-catcher on the road. And it gets noticed for what’s missing, too: “People always stop and look when I drive by, wondering why they don’t hear anything,” says Weiss. The only noise comes from the friction of the tires on the road and a soft whirr.

Inside the driver’s cab, the first impression is no different than a conventional truck. But a closer look reveals a different dashboard display, with battery indicator instead of fuel indicator. The truck has an automatic transmission, wraparound mirror to enhance visibility, and on the outside an emergency button that can re-start the truck’s system if there’s a problem.

Emission-free in 2050

The e-truck was deployed in Cologne in March 2024. It’s one of now over 500 trucks in Freight’s sustainable fleet. By 2030, DHL Freight plans to deploy 6,500 heavy-duty trucks with zero-emission or low-emission drive technology to reduce CO2 emissions by 30% compared to 2019. This is the main goal of Freight’s decarbonization strategy – a top priority over the next several years – on the way to achieving zero emissions by 2050.

Robert Weiss is certainly impressed by his new vehicle. “You don’t hear it, because it’s so quiet – that’s also nice here inside the vehicle. It’s eco-friendly and accelerates fast,” he says, adding with a laugh: “Sometimes it takes people by surprise when the light turns green and I leave them behind.” Electric engines react much more immediately that diesel powered vehicles.

The fact that Freight has already deployed hundreds of low-emission or zero-emission trucks is a great achievement and I want to thank all colleagues, including those at our service partners. We will continue to rely on different technologies for now because it’s not yet clear which drive technology will become most widespread and when – also in terms of existing charging infrastructure.

Christoph Schönwandt, VP GoGreen DHL Freight

Known around the town

When Weiss arrives at each of his customers, the mood is positive. He unloads the goods, the customers sign on the scanner to confirm delivery, and they joke around a bit. “That’s why I enjoy the work,” says Weiss. “When you drive a regular route, you know everyone, and you can have some fun with each other. That’s worth a lot.”

After his deliveries are done, Weiss returns to the terminal. His first tour of the day is deliveries, followed by a second tour to pick up shipments from customers. He drives 80 to 90 kilometers per day – up to 20,000 a year. “For local transport the Volvo e-truck is perfect. There is less wear-and-tear from the stop-and-go traffic in the city,” says Tobias Meisen, who is network manager at the Cologne terminal. “We’re currently adding more charging stations here in Cologne and want to continue to expand the use of electric vehicles. We’re also getting extremely positive feedback from customers on our e-truck and hydrogen truck. It’s great that they see such a concrete example of what we’re doing in the area of sustainability. And our drivers, who used to swear by diesel, now don’t want to go back to driving diesel!”

Later in the afternoon, the work day for Weiss and his Volvo truck winds down. He unloads the shipments he’s picked up, returns the pallets, submits his paperwork at the desk, and hooks the Volvo up to the charging station every other day. Weiss has vacation soon and his colleagues are already lining up to drive the e-truck while he’s gone. “I hope they take care of my truck,” says Weiss. He’s only been driving the electric truck since March, but they already make a real good team.