On a visit to Rome, Joan Benore experienced difficulty breathing in the air in the garage area where a diesel tour bus dropped her off for a tour of the Vatican. On another trip back to the Vatican, she had a moment of panic when she remembered her previous experience, but when she stepped off what was now an electric bus, she realized she could breathe easy.
Benore, vice president of Michigan-based 3PL Benore Logistic Systems, Inc., said it was that moment she understood the impact of emissions. That is just one of the reasons she is passionate about implementing sustainable trucks at her family’s company.
[RELATED: Repeal of truck emissions regs 'doesn’t help the trucking industry']
Many fleets have begun adopting electric vehicles because of their long-term cost benefits due to decreased maintenance and fuel costs, but Benore Logistics believes the shift is more than mechanical. It’s cultural as the company’s turn toward sustainability is changing its driver demographic.
“Have I seen responses or heard drivers be excited about it? Absolutely! I've heard some reserved, not sure where this is going to take us, but the younger generation does seem to adapt to it a little bit more readily than maybe some of the tenured drivers,” Benore said. “There are drivers, as well as mechanics, that have been attracted to us because we have been on the forefront of challenging these new technologies or new sustainability initiatives. I've heard it directly from a few of our employees’ mouths.”
Benore has a fleet of over 700 trucks, and while most of those trucks are fueled by diesel, it is one of the smaller fleets out there that has dived headfirst into investing in alternative fuel trucks.
Benore said the company has 15 hydrogen trucks in partnership with Hyundai Glovis and recently purchased several that have been converted to hydrogen. Benore also has eight battery electric trucks, including one Nikola in operation and a Tesla truck on order.
Though the primary reason for implementing sustainable vehicles was to reduce emissions, it has the added benefit of attracting a younger generation of drivers, she said.
The average age of a truck driver has increased, and there’s a lack of young professional drivers entering the workforce, according to recent data.
Benore said younger generations are more interested in environmental standards and excited about new technology, but a key factor that attracts younger drivers is a greater comfort level that can be found in the newer trucks.
“It's a very difficult type of job driving a truck; you have a lot of responsibility, and so for us as a company, one of the number one things that we focus on when we're screening and looking for drivers is the driver’s safety commitment, but the technology is bringing that to us as well,” she said. “If you're changing lanes, it's going to notify you. It will stop the truck if something stops abruptly in front of you.
“I really do feel that this is going to be a part of some exciting opportunities to bring drivers into the workforce and expand and grow it,” she added. “I see the innovation and the technology assisting those that may have been hesitant in the past to be attracted to driving the newer equipment; even with the standard diesel trucks, technology is bringing the ease of driving a semi to the forefront for people to look at that as a new opportunity.”
Benore compares the shift to sustainable vehicles to the shift from manual to automatic. Back when the company updated the majority of its fleet to automatics, Benore said it was able to bring in a different group of drivers, increasing a younger workforce. The company still has around 20 manual trucks because “some drivers just love that,” Benore said.
But EV trucking comes with new tools, training and routines, so the industry needs drivers who are willing to meet this challenge.
Benore said the company attracts those drivers by promoting its EVs and hydrogen trucks at events and trade shows.
Outside of sustainability and technology, she said one of the biggest attractions of BEVs and hydrogen for younger people is it means they get to be at home every night because the trucks they have can only be used in local runs. Another benefit, she said, is that drivers are more satisfied when driving BEVs because of fewer breakdowns.
The trucks themselves are more expensive, but BEVs need a lot less maintenance and save on fuel costs, and because of that more and more trucking companies will move in that direction, said Andy Bennett, CEO of Evolve, a software company that manages electric vehicle charging.
“The value is really there,” Bennett said. “I think it's exciting. It's still early days here in the United States, but it's really starting to pick up steam.”
That steam is also energizing the workforce, said Benore Logistic Systems President and CEO Jeffery Benore.
“We’ve seen a clear shift – candidates are asking about our electric and hydrogen trucks during the hiring process. The sustainable fleet has become a point of interest and, in some cases, a reason they apply,” he said. “Drivers are curious, motivated to learn the new equipment, and see it as a sign that Benore is investing in the future. While most of our fleet remains diesel, we’re actively expanding our green operations as part of a long-term strategy.”
