Growing a Zero-Emissions Transportation Ecosystem in Cincinnati

This case study describes the development of a zero-emissions transportation ecosystem in Cincinnati, focusing on the collaboration between Servall Electric, an electrical contractor, and Workhorse, a local manufacturer of electric last-mile delivery step vans.

• Servall Electric is integrating electric vehicles into its operations by installing EV charging stations and planning to transition its entire fleet of 25 to 30 vehicles to electric as older trucks are replaced.
• Workhorse, a Cincinnati-based manufacturer, has produced 133 electric step vans in the current year for clients including UPS, Pritchard Companies, and Pride Group Enterprises, with a total order book of 8,000 electric vehicles.
• The transition to electric trucks provides significant operational cost savings, with fuel costs dropping from approximately $60 per day for gas to $15 per day for electricity, representing a 75 percent saving on day one.
• Design improvements in electric step vans, such as a lower chassis and regenerative braking ('one pedal driving'), reduce driver physical strain by eliminating hundreds of steps per day and mitigating repetitive motion injuries and knee damage.
• Electric delivery vehicles address urban challenges including noise, air quality, and congestion, particularly in the last-mile delivery sector where emissions in the top 100 global cities could increase by over 30 percent by 2030, reaching 25 million tons of CO2 annually.

APA

RMI (2021). Growing a Zero-Emissions Transportation Ecosystem in Cincinnati. https://rmi.org/resources/growing-a-zero-emissions-transportation-ecosystem-in-cincinnati/

Chicago

RMI. Growing a Zero-Emissions Transportation Ecosystem in Cincinnati. 2021. https://rmi.org/resources/growing-a-zero-emissions-transportation-ecosystem-in-cincinnati/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Growing a Zero-Emissions Transportation Ecosystem in Cincinnati |date=7 September 2021 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/growing-a-zero-emissions-transportation-ecosystem-in-cincinnati/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2021growing, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Growing a Zero-Emissions Transportation Ecosystem in Cincinnati}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2021}, month = sep, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/growing-a-zero-emissions-transportation-ecosystem-in-cincinnati/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }