We associate Amazon to a website.
One click and in a few days – or even hours – what we want arrives on our doorstep.
It’s not magic. It’s logistics.
And the American giant is a true master in this field.
A master who over time has tried to adopt alternative delivery methods to improve efficiency and reduce emissions from last mile deliveries. Among them, we find electric delivery vehicles and micromobility hubsusable for shorter trips.
But let’s name names and surnames.
Indeed, a name: Rivian. A US automaker who received a very specific request from Amazon: 100,000 customized electric vans.
It is the largest order ever for electric delivery vehicles, and an order with a very clear objective: put them on the road globally by 2030, thus contributing to the elimination of millions of tons of CO2 per year.
Vans from Amazon and Rivian arrive in Europe
After the debut in the United States, the Amazon and Rivian vans arrive in Europe. From today, more than 300 vans will hit the streets of Munich, Berlin and Dusseldorf, alongside the other 1000 electric vehicles used by the e-commerce giant in Germany.
“Together, Amazon and Rivian designed and built a state-of-the-art electric vehicle, from the ground up, unlike anything on the road today,” he said. Neil Emery, Director Global Fleet & Product at Amazon. – The safety and comfort of our drivers has been our priority throughout the process and we have raised the bar with the vehicles arriving in Europe today.”
Before the official launch, the vans naturally had to pass a series of tests, which started last year. A phase that has allowed Rivian to improve the performance, safety and durability of the vehicles, putting them to the test in different climatic situations and in different geographical areas.
“Electric” implies “recharge” but don’t panic: Amazon is adding thousands of charging stations across Europe, creating an infrastructure that can support its increasingly large and sustainable fleet.
Our field test
But how they actually are the vans of Amazon and Rivian?
We flew to Germany to try one.
The aesthetics are extremely peculiar: there are no aggressive lines. It’s all soft, reassuring, with the Amazon logo on the front and two LED lights. The muzzle is very small since it does not have to house the heat engine but, on the other hand, The windshield is huge to provide as much visibility as possible for the driver. To help him also a series of sensors and cameras that allow you to have a 360 ° view, so as to guarantee the safety of the driver and those who, on the other hand, are on the road.
On the side there is space for a sliding door with un small step and a series of handholds that allow you to get on and off easily.
Among other things, the height of the step is not accidental, but designed precisely to make climbing easier, so as not to require any effort from the driver. Furthermore, the platform is designed to be non-slip, further increasing the level of safety.
And the rear door? There’s that too but it’s actually a… well, blue shutter. Like that of American garages. We therefore have a strap to raise and lower it and a track that keeps it adhesive to the roof so as not to steal space inside, space occupied by shelves that allow you to keep parcels in order.
Also on the back we find huge LEDs for the brake and position lights, as well as other handholds and another platform to facilitate the courier’s work.
Inside, both in the area reserved for the driver and in the one dedicated to parcels, there is all the necessary space, even in height: Amazon in fact wants its employees to be able to stand even inside the vantherefore without having to bend over or hunch over to do your job.
At some point though the driver will have to sit down and drive.
What awaits him?
A very personalized environment: there are the blue details, the steering wheel with two wheels, the on-board computer, one huge screen to control everything – from lights to doors – and of course everything needed to guarantee the aforementioned safety.
On board we also find technologies such as automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, anti-collision alerts… In short, nothing is missing.
We conclude with the autonomy: 229 km which obviously can vary according to the climatic conditions and also to the total weight of the vehicle, a weight which – as you can imagine – depends on the number of parcels present inside.
What do you think of these new vans? Ready to see them land in Italy too?