Yosemite Nationwide Park Adopted Ford F-150 Lightning EVs… Kind Of – CleanTechnica – Uplaza

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There’s nothing like going out to benefit from the nice open air. The clear air, the gorgeous views, the totally different tempo of life, and the reference to nature will be not solely a enjoyable, however a therapeutic expertise. However once you drive a diesel pickup on the market pulling a triple-axle trailer, park it in a campground, fireplace up a loud generator, and get the propane range and oven going, it could possibly form of begin to defeat the purpose.

When the individuals working in and visiting lovely locations rely extra closely on fossil fuels than individuals within the noisy and busy metropolis, it begins to change into an train in destroying nature within the try and get pleasure from it.

So, it’s refreshing once we see one thing like this:

For these unfamiliar, that is an F-150 Lightning electrical truck. Externally, it has the identical physique because the F-150 gasoline and hybrid variations. However, beneath the cab and mattress, there’s a really totally different body with battery modules between the rails for security. As an alternative of a gasoline engine underneath the hood, there’s a large frunk. The automobile is moved by entrance and rear drive items between the wheels, mounted transversely within the midst of unbiased suspensions.

In different phrases, it’s a really regular pickup truck that occurs to be electrical, affords energy plugs for emergencies, job websites, and campsites, and has extra storage!

Throughout 2024, quite a lot of totally different individuals on X/Twitter, reddit, and EV boards have noticed this electrical truck and not less than one among its siblings marked as belonging to “Yosemite National Park.” This, after all, makes EV followers visiting Yosemite excited, as a result of their ardour for each EVs and nationwide parks got here collectively in a lovely and enjoyable means. Who doesn’t love that.

There’s A Little Extra To This Story

Looks like a reasonably easy story, proper? Yosemite Nationwide Park purchased some EVs. EVs are superior. Nationwide parks are superior. Every little thing is superior.

However, there’s somewhat extra occurring right here. Should you’re aware of Nationwide Park Service autos, they typically aren’t marked something just like the automobile within the image. As an alternative of getting a inexperienced stripe (typically blue, typically no stripe) and the arrowhead NPS badge on the door, this automobile merely says “Yellowstone National Park.”

Official park autos additionally are likely to have federal authorities plates (the federal authorities points plates to itself, and nearly by no means makes use of state-issued plates), and eagle-eyed individuals on social media have seen that these Lightnings have California industrial plates. So, is that this some type of bizarre, rabid nationwide park fan who’s LARPing as a park ranger? Did they begin their very own firm referred to as “Yellowstone National Park” to raised pose as a park ranger??

It seems that the automobile will not be owned by the Nationwide Park Service, however the firm that owns these is allowed to signify itself as Yellowstone Nationwide Park.

The vehicles in query are owned by Aramark, the corporate that has a contract with the Nationwide Park Service to supply concessions within the park. By concessions, typically I imply they promote snacks, however often the corporate runs eating places, lodges, campgrounds, reward outlets, and absolutely anything not finished by a park ranger or different uniformed NPS worker instantly. Right here in america, we’re snug with the federal government proudly owning the park, however it’s usually seen as a type of communism in the event that they attempt to make a buck operating a enterprise of some variety. So, they farm that out to any person else who can extract some shareholder worth from the place.

Earlier than we get too deep into politics, coverage, and philosophies of presidency, let’s get again to EVs. Each park has a concessioner (Aramark does this for quite a lot of different parks), and the concessioners do lots of vital work in order that we are able to benefit from the parks. Whether or not the Park Service or the concessioners ought to be doing it’s a query for Congress and possibly the courts, however irrespective of who the individuals get their paychecks from, they’ll have to be driving autos round to supply these providers.

Actually, it’s simply nice to see that the work of operating a part of the park is being finished with an EV, even when Aramark may have gotten away with hybrids or straight-up gas-powered F-150s.

If This Can Work At The Parks, What’s Everybody Else’s Excuse?

Not each park is out within the wilderness. Some parks (Sizzling Springs Nationwide Park is a good instance) are proper on the town the place non-public infrastructure can cowl EV drivers’ wants. However general, parks are usually additional out from the crushed path and away from the large metropolis (or perhaps a medium-sized one).

There’s a persistent fable on the market that EVs don’t work away from the large metropolis. This was true 100 years in the past through the first EV period, and it was usually true in 2010-2013 when most EV charging infrastructure was in bigger metro areas. Certain, in these days, individuals nonetheless did cross-country journeys to show a degree, however it wasn’t straightforward.

That these vehicles can do the identical work because the gas-powered ones that had been there earlier than exhibits us that this fable isn’t true. If there’s any energy in any respect close by, EVs can work nice. They don’t want DC quick chargers in each parking area, only a easy 240v station that pulls as a lot energy as a garments dryer will do. With 200+ miles of vary, and a full battery pack each morning when individuals go to work, the vehicles do the job simply fantastic.

Even journeys away from the park are fantastic, particularly in California. Must ship somebody to go decide up some provides on the town? There’s loads of vary to try this with out charging. Must ship somebody to a convention or to do enterprise at one other park? Most locations have loads of infrastructure for the truck to drive nearly anyplace.

While you see an organization or some joker who desires to drive a pickup to work in a cubicle inform you that an EV received’t do the job for them, present them that Yosemite has EVs doing vital work with out skipping a beat. Except they’re doing one thing very uncommon or can’t plug the automobile in at night time, there’s no excuse.

Featured picture by Ford.