Schneider, a multimodal provider of transportation, intermodal, and logistics services, will soon begin taking delivery of nearly 100 Class 8 battery-electric vehicles  at its intermodal operations in Southern California.

Schneider’s first Freightliner eCascadia is set to roll off the assembly line at Daimler Truck North America’s Portland, Oregon plant.

The carrier had previously reported orders for 62 eCascadias. Now the company will deploy an additional 30 BEVs. As a result, Schneider said it will have one of the largest electric fleets in North America, marking a critical step in the company’s efforts to operationalize zero-emission vehicles into its truck fleet.

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“The integration of nearly 100 zero-emission vehicles is an important milestone for Schneider as we are moving beyond the battery-electric truck testing phase to running an operation at scale,” said Schneider President and CEO Mark Rourke. “In combination with rail movement, we can offer our intermodal customers meaningful emissions reduction value by utilizing BEV dray trucks.”

A statement from the company said battery-electric trucks are crucial in meeting Schneider’s sustainability goals of reducing CO2 per-mile emissions by 7.5% by 2025 and 60% by 2035. Schneider said it has already achieved more than half of its 2025 goal by reducing per-mile emissions by 5%. 

According to Schneider, the new eCascadias have the potential to avoid over 81,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions per day. Over the course of a year, that is equivalent to removing 2,400 gas-powered cars from the road.