Canada’s commercial fleet of electric vehicles is growing, but barriers remain if commercial EVs are to be adopted more widely, according to one industry player. 

In the past year, Canada Post, IKEA Canada and BC Transit are among the companies looking to expand or begin adding electric vehicles to their fleets. 

The latest data from Geotab show the company, which provides vehicle tracking to help businesses achieve their sustainability goals, has seen 72 per cent growth on its platform in Canada between August 2022 and August 2023, compared to 60 per cent growth in the U.S. 

COST HURDLES

Charlotte Argue, senior manager of Sustainable Mobility at Geotab, told BNNBloomberg.ca that companies still face hurdles to commercial EV adoption. 

“One big barrier that still exists is the relative cost, so the capital upfront cost of an electric truck compared to an equivalent gas or diesel truck,” she said in a recent telephone interview.

“In jurisdictions where there's additional incentives to support that price differential, that's helping those fleets make the case in these early days.” 

CHARGING INFRASTRUCTURE

Argue also highlighted the infrastructure upgrades that are required when a company begins to ramp up its EV fleet, specifically charging capabilities. 

“As the fleet starts to scale, it's a lot more investment both in terms of capital costs, but also just learning internal capacity,” she said. “Any jurisdiction that has programs that are both incentivizing infrastructure, but also supporting with advisory services or where the utility is being more proactive, this is also where we're seeing the hotspots for accelerated EV uptake.” 

Charging stations remain an issue for EV expansion in Canada for personal and commercial markets. Recent data from the Department of Natural Resources show less than a fifth of federally funded charging stations in Canada are operational, while several companies, including Telus, Parkland and Imperial are working to expand the network. 

SUPPLY CHAIN DELAYS

Another roadblock is supply. Hurdle said a company looking to switch its fleet to electric or add an electric vehicle is often left on a waitlist, while a gas or diesel-powered vehicle can be available sooner. 

“In some cases, there are certain vehicles that are not yet available in Canada that might be available in the U.S.,” she said. “One need is just to ensure that we have the supply, but we know that that's getting better.” 

BENEFITS OF ELECTRIFICATION

Despite the hurdles and upfront cost concerns, Argue said there are plenty of incentives for a company to make the switch to an EV fleet. 

“The driving experience is often preferable, you've got really good performance of EVs and drivers really like to drive them for many reasons,” she said. “Partly because of the acceleration and by the larger -- meaning heavy-duty -- drivers who drive commercial vehicles say that there's a lot less fatigue because you have less vibrations and less noise. So for employees and drivers, there's definitely a benefit there for them.” 

With files from The Canadian Press