CARB has announced a new program which offers fleet owners incentives between $10k and $15k per vehicle to buy Ford Transit Connect Electric vans.

Those little urban minivans, filled with just-in-time deliveries on the last mile from China, represent the digital economy’s presence on the streets of the material world, and they’re a perfect candidate for electrification. Most of them have regular routes, and most belong to a fleet, with a central location for convenient recharging. Because they’re in more or less constant motion, removing their emissions could clean up a lot of California carbon. 

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has announced a new program, beginning November 1, which offers commercial or municipal fleet owners incentives of between 10 and 15 thousand bucks per vehicle to buy Ford Transit Connect Electric vans.

The all-electric version of the ubiquitous Transit Connect light delivery van includes a powertrain made by Azure Dynamics Corporation and a lithium-ion battery pack from Johnson Controls. Its range is up to 80 miles on a charge.

“On average, a Transit Connect Electric will spend about ten years in service for a commercial vehicle fleet,” said Scott Harrison, CEO of Azure Dynamics. “The new incentive, in combination with the operational and maintenance savings resulting from the EV powertrain, may significantly reduce the incremental Transit Connect Electric acquisition cost and provides customers with an attractive less than two-year payback.”

Image: Ford