These boxy, white, electrical supply vans you could be seeing on the streets of Seattle are getting used to ship Amazon packages.
GeekWire noticed certainly one of Basic Motors’ BrightDrop vans within the Ballard neighborhood this week and acquired an up-close take a look at the outside and inside of the automobile.
Impartial Supply Service Companions (DSP), who ship packages in Amazon Prime-branded uniforms and automobiles, are utilizing a few of the BrightDrop automobiles. DSPs can select to safe automobiles by leases or different means as a part of their work, in line with Amazon.
Bloomberg reported final month that Amazon is individually testing a couple of dozen of the vans. The tech big acquired a small variety of the automobiles in 2023, in line with a GM spokesperson. The pilot is reportedly aimed toward exploring further EV choices for Amazon’s supply fleet, which incorporates vans made by Rivian.
“We’re dedicated to having 100,000 electrical supply automobiles on the street by 2030, and we recurrently take a look at numerous automobile choices — together with a small variety of Chevrolet BrightDrops in our fleet,” Amazon spokesperson Steve Kelly beforehand informed Bloomberg.
Amazon started rolling out electrical supply vans in summer season 2022 as a part of its Local weather Pledge dedication to realize net-zero carbon emissions throughout international operations by 2040. The company said in June that it had greater than 25,000 electrical Rivian vans on the street throughout the U.S.
[ Related: Inside Amazon’s Rivian electric van: A greener, quieter ride — and a sliding door fit for Star Trek ]
The white vans are a stark distinction to the blue Amazon-branded fleet that often contains the Prime brand and a quirky slogan splashed on the edges and again.
A blue-vested DSP driver behind the wheel informed GeekWire he was having fun with driving the BrightDrop as he streamed his music by a big, heart “infotainment” show. The again of the van featured no shelving, so packages have been scattered on the ground of the van. The driving force additionally mentioned there was no AI-equipped Amazon safety camera put in within the entrance cab — and he favored that.
Replace: This story has been up to date to mirror that the vans aren’t a part of Amazon’s take a look at.
Take a look at extra views of the BrightDrop van in Seattle:
