As a self-proclaimed petrolhead and someone who works in the auto industry, I spend most of my time defending the honor of internal combustion engine in all its variants. We car guys believe that the “burning stuff”, with all their complexity and messiness of operation, have a soul that the electric motor can never match. That said, there are a few types of cars I think must go electric ASAP.

And commercial vehicles are at the top of my list. Let me give you a bit of perspective why I hate these things and why I think it is in everyone’s interest if they bite the bullet and go electric. I live in a busy metropolis, in a busy neighborhood, on a busy street. My apartment is located just above a grocery store. And it’s great, for the most part, as it means anything I need is only a few steps away at all times.

But every morning I wake up to the bang and clatter of rickety old trucks and pickups bringing fresh produce to the shop. Sometime I open the window to yell at them, but in doing that I have to breath lungfuls of CO2 and other noxious gases because, of course, most of these trucks run on diesel. And it doesn’t pay for the driver to shut the engine while dropping off packages, so he let it run… right under my goddamn window!

I think you are starting to see where I’m coming from. I believe car makers should first address the issue of commercial and public transportation vehicle and make all of them electric before moving on to personal cars. Just think of the benefits. The army of commercial vehicles that marches around every city every day consumes an enormous amount of fuel and pumps tons of unsavory emissions into the air. Don’t get me wrong. I have nothing against what they do. They provide an invaluable service, bringing us fruits and chicken and cereal and yogurt and wine. It’s just that there are ways now to make them more efficient and less irritating to the citizens.

By converting or replacing all commercial vehicles with electrically-driven ones we can drastically improve the quality of life in big cities. You have only to do a quick mental calculation to realize the benefits. When you go out today just count the number of delivery trucks and pickups you see on your way. We’re not even going to take into account the government vehicles – police cars, municipal vehicles, etc. Now imagine how much quieter the city would be if the combined noises of all those vehicles were to be eliminated. The same goes for the quality of the air. Needless to say, with quieter and cleaner vehicles to operate, delivery drivers themselves would be happier people, which goes a long way to make them less obnoxious.

It makes a lot of sense. Delivery vehicles usually have a fixed schedule, meaning they are less susceptible to the main Achilles heel of electric motoring which is charging time and range anxiety. The fixed routes and schedules of these vehicles mean we can devise efficient plans vis-a-vis their charging cycles and driving range. And since these are usually sizable vehicles, there is ample room for large battery packs. So come on law makers. Instead of picking on our personal automobiles and restricting them with ever-tightening emission regulations, ban all fossil fuel commercial vehicles and make them all electric.

I, for one, would appreciate it!