When Mack’s LR model was launched in 2015, it was touted as an upgrade replacement for the TerraPro LEU, and barely four years later, the company’s flagship refuse truck got a trendy upgrade of its own.
An all-electric LR was unveiled last May, kicking off a long-term validation collaboration with the New York City Department of Sanitation (DSNY) – the largest sanitation department in the world with 6,000-plus trucks collecting more than 12,000 tons of refuse and recyclables daily.
Roy Horton, Mack’s director of product strategy, said the truck maker honed in on the refuse segment for its electrification plans – while seemingly the rest of the industry focuses on long-haul – because it’s a closed-loop application with predetermined routes that have lower range requirements.
“[These considerations] really help facilitate the kind of research and development that needs to happen in order to get new technology to the market quickly,” Horton said.
The Mack LR Electric demonstrator – the nation’s first 72,000-lb. GVW BEV collection truck – will be based from DSNY’s Brooklyn North 1 garage and tested on local collection routes. Several vehicle performance metrics will be evaluated by DSNY over the course of the test – which will get underway this spring – including operating range, payload capacity, regenerative braking performance and the overall functionality of a fully electric vehicle in refuse operations.
DSNY Deputy Commissioner Rocky DiRico said the truck’s initial route will be about 18 miles, but the real test, he added, is evaluating how the equipment will handle stopping and starting an average of every 40 feet over an 8-hour shift.
The truck, which should be in DSNY’s possession by next week, will split time between a combination of routes and being racked on DSNY’s dynamometer, putting the system through even more simulated tests.
