Mack Trucks and dealer Kriete Truck Centers recently delivered two LR Electric refuse trucks to the city of Madison, WI. An event on Sept. 17 featuring speeches from Mack, Kriete and the mayor of Madison made the delivery of the trucks, which have already begun service in the city, official.

“What’s a big deal about delivering a couple of refuse trucks? Well, obviously they’re electric, so that makes it a big deal. But they’re the first heavy-duty refuse electric vehicles for the state of Wisconsin. So that’s a pretty big deal. It’s a significant step forward in sustainable transport solutions and for the state of Wisconsin and the city of Madison,” said George Fotopolis, vice president of e-mobility for Mack. “The introduction of electric vehicles is not just about replacing old trucks with new trucks, it’s embarking in a new era of waste management.”

“We are really all in on electrifying transportation and finding ways to reduce our climate pollution footprint in the city of Madison,” said Satya Rhodes-Conway, mayor of Madison. “Some folks ask, why are you making these investments in electrification? I mean, the first answer is we have to shift our fleet anyway. These vehicles have a life cycle. We buy new vehicles all the time, and we are constantly interested in buying the best vehicles for our community. And one of the reasons that we’re going all in on electrification is because it’s better for the environment and mostly because it’s better for air quality.

“If we can take even one diesel truck off of the streets and put an electric truck in its place that is not creating those emissions, that’s a win for the health of our community,” she continued. “It’s a win for air quality in our community. It’s a win for reducing our climate pollution footprint in our community. But it’s also a win for our budget because what we’ve found with our electric vehicle fleets is that we actually have long-term savings and reduced maintenance for our fleets.”

The two zero tailpipe emissions trucks delivered to the city are a Mack LR Electric with a Leach rear-loader and an LR Electric with a Labrie Automated Side Loader (ASL). The trucks began running their routes in Madison in mid-July, and in the mayor’s speech she noted the opportunity to provide feedback to Mack about their performance.

Madison has set a goal as part of its Climate Forward Agenda of reaching 100% renewable energy and net-zero carbon emissions for city operations by 2030 and community wide by 2050. The Mack LR Electric models delivered to Madison will operate out of the east side Streets Division site. Madison currently has the largest municipal electric vehicle fleet in Wisconsin.

To accommodate the electric trucks, Kriete Truck Centers’ Madison location became a Mack EV certified dealer, a process which involves opening a dedicated electric bay, training technicians on EV maintenance, installing a charging station, and more.

“It has provided us the opportunity to train our associates in a new trade and a new craft, which is really, really exciting,” said David Kriete, president and chief executive officer of Kriete Truck Centers. “Our customer, in this case the city, had a need and a demand and we were able to fulfill that through our business partner. For Mack Trucks, obviously this is a milestone moment to have brand new product, which took a ton of investment in R&D dollars throughout the years. It’s beautiful to see it put to life. And then obviously we’re checking a box in a big way as it relates to the community, right? There’s a lot to be said about making the commitment to sustainability that the mayor and the team at the city has made that commitment to, and obviously it’s great to hold hands in that journey.”

From our sister site: Fleet Equipment.