Mack Catenary Vehicle Demonstrated Near SoCal Ports
A Mack Truck prototype equipped with a proprietary plug-in hybrid-electric driveline participated in a zero-emission eHighway demonstration in California near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
Siemens Corp. installed the eHighway infrastructure, which covers one mile of select lanes of a highway, with a catenary system similar to those used to power trolleys or streetcars.
The demo, using a Mack Pinnacle axle back model, was conducted near the ports — the two largest in the United States — as part of a project sponsored by the South Coast Air Quality Management District. The project aimed to reduce air pollution at freight-intensive locations, such as at the two ports, according to the Greensboro, N.C.-based company.
The day cab truck connected to the overhead contact lines, which transfered energy to the vehicle’s electric driveline with a current collector supplied by Siemens, allowing the truck to operate on the eHighway corridor.
“Mack continuously investigates alternative solutions to diesel, and the catenary system is just one of a number of projects in which we are currently involved,” Jonathan Randall, Mack senior vice president of North American sales, said in a statement.
Mack is a unit of Volvo Group.
