FENTON, Mo. – The controlled chaos inside Amazon’s Fenton delivery station during Prime Day 2023 culminates with drivers lining up, rolling up, and loading up. The big event requires a huge effort and big vehicles to transport the millions of orders placed this week alone.
Ryan Faircloth is the on-the-road operations manager at the Fenton Amazon site. He showed FOX 2 one of Amazon’s custom electric delivery vehicles made by Rivian.
“The biggest focus is on safety, comfort, and making sure they have plenty of space to deliver and handle all the packages that they need,” Faircloth said.
These vehicles are packed with technology. The star of the show is the batteries that power these EVs.
“When they did this, they took into account the range of our delivery, how far we have to go,” Faircloth said. “It does that, plus almost double that. The other factor is they have regenerative braking. Every time they remove their foot from the pedal, or they apply the brake, it takes some of that kinetic energy and puts it back into the battery. It actually recharges a little at a time.”
Drivers use a large screen to access their routes and navigation. It also provides them control over nearly everything in the cab and bulkhead.
“Additionally, a switch on the exterior so if they’re on the outside, they can hit the switch, and it’ll open it up halfway because safety-wise, we don’t want the door shooting forward,” Faircloth said.
The idea for these vehicles was conceived with safety in mind. The 360-degree sensors enhance visibility for drivers, not only making it safer for them, but also for people living in the communities where they’re making deliveries.
“St. Louis was one of the first dozen markets in the entire country to have these new Rivian electric delivery vehicles,” said Andy DiOrio, a spokesperson for Amazon.
He said there are more than 100 electric vehicles on the road in the St. Louis area, part of a fleet of 5,000 EVs in 800 cities throughout the company’s delivery network. By 2030, DiOrio said Amazon plans to have 100,000 electric vehicles making deliveries nationwide.
“The reason why we’re doing this, it’s part of our climate change initiative by Amazon to be net carbon zero by 2040,” DiOrio said.
A goal Amazon’s St. Louis operation hopes to help the company achieve.