Electric trucks are no longer limited to short regional runs. Across Europe, hauliers and infrastructure operators are now demonstrating that battery-electric heavy goods vehicles can be used intensively, cover long daily distances and even operate on cross-border routes, provided charging infrastructure and transport operations are designed around them.
Recent examples from Switzerland and the Nordic region highlight how this shift is playing out in practice. In Switzerland, a domestic freight operator has shown that electric trucks with a nominal range of around 300 kilometres can exceed 1,000 kilometres per day through double crews and depot-based fast charging. Meanwhile, a new pilot route linking southern Sweden and Denmark is testing daily long-distance electric freight across national borders, focusing on real-world operations rather than controlled trials. Together, the projects illustrate that the key constraints for electric road freight are increasingly organisational and infrastructural, not technological.
Switzerland: intensive use built around operations and depot charging
Swiss haulier Hugelshofer Logistik AG is operating battery-electric trucks at a scale and utilisation level that goes beyond typical short-haul applications. The company operates a fleet of 220 trucks, including 80 electric vehicles, with 150 drivers using electric HGVs daily.
The operator deploys Renault Trucks E-Tech T vehicles with double crews, allowing drivers to carry out intermediate charging during mandatory rest breaks and complete a full recharge overnight at the depot. Under this operating model, each electric truck typically covers more than 600 kilometres per day, despite a nominal range of around 300 kilometres.
On a record day, one vehicle in the fleet travelled 1,007 kilometres within 24 hours.
Photo @ Renault Trucks
According to the company, performance depends primarily on how electric trucks are integrated into transport operations rather than on battery capacity alone. Routes and charging strategies are adjusted to maximise daily operating time, while battery capacity is configured according to operational needs in order to maintain payload and efficiency.
The electric fleet is supported by depot-based charging infrastructure at Hugelshofer’s Frauenfeld site, where 30 fast-charging stations with a maximum output of 480 kW have been installed. The site can charge up to 100 trucks per day, with around 95 per cent of charging taking place at the depot. The system is supported by a photovoltaic installation producing 1.2 million kWh annually, as well as three transformers designed to ensure grid stability.
Hugelshofer Logistik reports operating costs for its electric trucks that are around 30 per cent lower than those of comparable diesel vehicles. The company’s electrification strategy is supported by Switzerland’s regulatory framework, under which zero-emission trucks benefit from reduced charges under the LSVA road toll system. In addition, the Swiss Confederation has announced a CHF 20 million programme for heavy-truck charging infrastructure between 2026 and 2030. Over the first eleven months of 2025, Switzerland recorded an electrification rate of 14.7 per cent for trucks over 16 tonnes, compared with a European average of 1.9 per cent.
Nordic cross-border route: testing daily international electric freight
Photo @ Øresundsbron
In the Nordic region, a pilot project is focusing on the feasibility of electric freight transport on longer international routes. The initiative involves Øresundsbron, Kim Johansen International Transport and DSV, and is scheduled to run during the first half of 2026.
As part of the project, two electric trucks are being deployed on a fixed daily route between Landskrona in southern Sweden and Horsens in Denmark. The route covers 339 kilometres and crosses the Øresund Bridge, aiming to test both charging infrastructure and freight operations in a cross-border setting.
The participating transport companies will continuously evaluate the pilot, with the stated objective of assessing whether electric trucks can be scaled up for longer-distance operations across national borders. The project places particular emphasis on cooperation between infrastructure operators and hauliers, as well as on the practical coordination of logistics and charging rather than on vehicle performance in isolation.
