Milk floats are small delivery trucks used for efficient and quiet delivery of goods, often electric and designed for frequent stops. They have a simple design and slow top speeds, making them ideal for neighborhood use. Modern milk floats can have digital controls and refrigerated cargo areas. They are best suited for delivery routes with frequent stops but have been used for other purposes such as hauling coal or as lunch trucks.
A milk float is a small delivery truck designed to efficiently and quietly deliver products to many stops in an area. As the name suggests, milk floats are often used for early morning milk supply. Many of these vehicles are electric, ensuring they “float” through neighborhoods during deliveries without waking residents.
A typical milk float looks like a typical delivery truck or van, only smaller. A compact one or two-seat cab may or may not have doors, and the rear of the vehicle is often flat, with an awning over it to protect the goods being delivered. Since milk floats have relatively slow top speeds, often between 28 and 30 mph (45 to 48 km/h), they can be classified as Neighborhood Electric Vehicles, or NEVs. The simple designs of these vehicles mean they can be built to withstand years of use in milk and produce delivery fleets. It is not uncommon in some European regions to find milk floats consisting of a new cabin installed on a decades old chassis.
An early type of milk float that is no longer in use is the pedestrian milk float. These little milk floats look like wagons with a cover over their tips. The float’s wheels are controlled by levers on its handle, allowing a deliveryman to walk along with their fully loaded float. As the economy and urban growth forced delivery companies to cover longer trips on each delivery run, these types of milk floats fell out of use.
Modern milk floats are often built by the same companies that produce electric vehicles for industrial use. Their designs can feature digital controls and sophisticated electronics that extend their ranges to over 40 miles (64 km) in some cases. Milk floats come in traditional open-top designs, or can be built with refrigerated cargo areas enclosed in doors, like a typical delivery van.
Milk floats are best suited for delivery routes that have frequent stops, such as delivering milk to a neighborhood. In larger cities, or in cases where a delivery driver needs to travel long distances between stops, a milk float’s limited battery range and limited top speed make it a poor choice.
However, several companies have used milk floats. In countries where coal is a popular power source, milk floats have been fitted with beds that can carry large amounts of coal. Produce vendors, lunch truck operators, and large yards who need small, versatile trucks for hauling have successfully used milk floats to meet their needs.
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