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FedEx ordered 2,000 electric trucks for $300 million and expects $800 million in fuel savings. Plus 250 electric garbage trucks at Republic Services and battery electric locomotives hauling freight.

In this episode of Current Outlook, Eric breaks down the economics behind FedEx’s electric delivery trucks, how Republic Services runs electric refuse trucks on one of the hardest duty cycles in trucking, and the battery electric locomotives now working in Chicago and California.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

00:00 - Heavy electrification is no longer a pilot

00:30 - What this episode covers and why it matters

01:49 - FedEx’s $300 million order for Harbinger electric trucks

03:23 - Why Harbinger’s clean-sheet 800-volt chassis matters

04:16 - Fixed delivery routes and overnight charging economics

04:43 - Republic Services scales to 250 electric refuse trucks

05:37 - Co-developing the Volterra electric collection truck

06:04 - Refuse-truck redesign for driver comfort and safety

06:31 - HUDDIG’s electric backhoe loader and 40% battery boost

07:27 - Regenerative braking and extended electric operation

08:27 - Quiet construction work in urban and indoor environments

08:55 - Metra launches battery-electric passenger rail in Chicago

09:50 - 65-mile range and fast turnaround charging on rail

10:19 - Union Pacific tests battery locomotives in Southern California

11:29 - City Harvest’s electric refrigerated trucks in New York

12:04 - Why diesel reefers are a neighborhood pollution problem

12:47 - Charging speed, range, and food rescue logistics

13:14 - Which sector will scale faster: trucks or rail?

💡 WHY IT MATTERS Heavy-duty electrification now wins on cost, not just emissions. For fleet operators, cities, and anyone tracking the freight business, these three stories are the same story: the spreadsheet flipped.

💬 Which fleet will go electric fastest: parcel delivery, refuse, or rail? Tell us in the comments.

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