Kenworth Hybrids Arrive in NYC

NEW YORK. The first two of 17 new Kenworth T370 hybrid trucks were delivered to the New York City Parks & Recreation Dept. yesterday at their 22nd annual vehicle & equipment show. The 17 dump and rack trucks mark the first step in a complete conversion of the parks fleet to medium-duty hybrids, and fit with the city’s plans to green all of its fleet operations in what is the largest municipal fleet in the country, according to Keith Kerman, the Parks Dept. asst. commissioner, citywide operations.

With the displays ringing the iconic Unisphere from the 1964 World’s Fair in Flushing Meadows Park, the annual Parks Dept. equipment event is a showcase for new truck technology, attracting fleet managers from all over the New York metropolitan area. With N.Y.C. about to release a task force report on greening all of its various fleet operations, many of those departments were also on hand at the Unisphere with their own latest hybrid trucks, ranging from a CNG/hydraulic hybrid refuse collection truck to a Class 3 COE diesel-electric hybrid parts chaser.