Along with a pledge to create a national zero-emissions freight strategy, the US government yesterday unveiled the first-ever national target to shift to a zero-emissions freight sector for truck, rail, aviation, and marine.
According to a White House fact sheet, this approach entails fresh federal investments that were made public yesterday, ongoing stakeholder engagement on zero-emission freight infrastructure, and upcoming action plans on each of the freight sectors.
In addition to mobilizing a wide range of government resources, the strategy will prioritize activities to address hotspots for air pollution and solve the climate issue. It will also take into account significant community engagement and public participation.
According to the fact sheet, President Joe Biden’s current objectives to achieve net-zero emissions from the transportation sector by 2050 and a carbon pollution-free energy sector by 2035 are supported and aligned with the new pledge. Along with these significant new financial initiatives, the administration also disclosed a number of other important steps under the strategy, such as a new initiative to track and expedite the deployment of infrastructure for charging and refueling heavy-duty vehicles and another program to standardize heavy-duty vehicle charging depots.
In keeping with this pledge, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that Class 6 and Class 7 heavy duty vehicles—which include delivery trucks, trash trucks, and school buses—will be replaced with zero-emission vehicles through a nearly $1 billion funding opportunity made possible by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act for cities, states, and tribes.
The $400 million Reduction of Truck Emissions at Port Facilities Grant Programme was unveiled by the Department of Transportation with the goal of lowering pollutants and improving air quality for truck drivers, port employees, and families who reside in the communities that surround ports.
Additionally, the energy department announced a $72-million commitment to launch the “SuperTruck: Charged” program, which will show how vehicle-grid integration makes it possible for truck stops and depots to offer reasonably priced, dependable charging while bolstering grid resilience. In order to discuss accelerating the development of the infrastructure required to make a zero-emissions freight ecosystem a reality in the United States, the government organized a roundtable yesterday at the White House with stakeholders from commercial truck fleets, ports, vehicle manufacturers, state and local governments, utilities, infrastructure providers, and climate and environmental justice organizations.
