Amazon announced the arrival of its new custom electric delivery vans from Rivian in Europe, with the first vans rolling out in Germany. More than 300 electric delivery vans are hitting the road in Munich, Berlin, and Dusseldorf in the coming weeks, joining a fleet of thousands of electric vans already in operation in Europe, including more than 1,000 electric vans in Germany.
“Together, Amazon and Rivian designed and built a state-of-the-art electric vehicle from the ground up, and unlike anything else on the road today,” said Neil Emery, Amazon, director, global fleet & product. “The safety and comfort of our drivers were top of mind for us throughout this process, and we’ve raised the bar on both with the vehicle we are rolling out in Europe today.”
The company said the custom vehicles include technology and features such as:
- A safety-first design focused on superior 360-degree visibility and vehicle features that protect drivers and pedestrians.
- A suite of innovative safety features including a large windshield to enhance driver visibility, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and collision warnings.
- First-of-its-kind embedded technology that fully integrates the delivery workflow with the vehicle, enabling seamless access to routing, navigation, driver support and more.
- Features to enhance the driver experience and create ease on the road, such as automatic door locking/unlocking as the driver approaches or leaves the vehicle and a powered bulkhead door that opens when drivers reach their delivery location.
- A strengthened door on the driver’s side for additional protection, and an ergonomically designed driver’s cabin and cargo area for safe, and easy movement inside the van.
- Batteries that are light, resilient, and low cost in addition to lasting the lifetime of the vehicle.
- Amazon has added thousands of charging stations at its facilities across Europe and will continue to invest in building an infrastructure to support a more sustainable delivery fleet.
In 2022, Amazon used zero-emission vehicles, including electric vans and micro-mobility solutions like e-cargo bikes, e-scooters, and walkers, to deliver more than 120 million packages to customers in Europe. The new vans from Rivian, along with the expansion of micro-mobility hubs across European cities, will help Amazon deliver even more packages in zero-emission vehicles, the company says.
