The state of California has awarded a technology grant of $23.6 million to four truck manufacturers who will work to create zero-emissions drayage trucks and the infrastructure to support them at multiple California ports.
All of the grant money will go to the South Coast Air Quality Management District who will work together with major manufacturers including BYD, Kenworth, Peterbilt, and Volvo to create 43 zero-emissions trucks. A combination of battery electric and plug-in hybrid trucks will be tested for use and charging stations.
The goal of the program is to both test new clean-air technologies and to serve as a demonstration of how zero-emissions trucks could be used on a large scale at California ports.
It is also part of the California Sustainable Freight Action Plan which plans to “improve freight efficiency, transition to zero-emission technologies, and increase competitiveness of California’s freight system” as ordered by California Governor Edmund Brown in his EXECUTIVE ORDER B-32-15.
The executive order aims jump-start some major changes in California with an ambitious program that could make past CARB compliance requirements seem like child’s play.
Source: fleetowner, scvnews, california
Image Credit: Chris Lawton via Tookapic
This will be a 23,000,000 wad of money that will produce a product no one will purchase, will be unviable for service use, and spend more time on the side of the road dead blocking traffic. Should use that money to fix pot holes but they won’t.
Two of the four companies listed are not North American Companies, that is a problem for me. One of them doesn’t even look to be a manufacturer, but rather a modifier of existing platforms through other manufacturers, BYD. From what I see they work with Hino or similar small platform “trucks” to make them electric. Does anybody else see a problem here? How much of that money California is issuing is from the Federal Government. I’m all for cleaner resources, but don’t outsource or give money to foreign entities, just because they have offices in the US. I am not an Isolationist, but there is no need when we have at least two more American/North American Manufacturers who do not appear to have skin in the game, or they should have it open for all manufacturers. California, don’t limit or pick your winners, you tend to drive out innovation with your regulations, not sure if you’ve seen all the businesses moving to neighboring states from within your borders. You may want to address that, as you can’t continue to fund these kind of grants without that tax base being in your state.
If these guys were making any money, they wouldn’t be driving old, broken-down trucks.
There’s NO MONEY in hauling containers. Most of the container haulers I see drive old pieces of junk. So, that should tell you they aren’t making much money from it.
Our tax dollars at work…
I don’t believe any company will be able to develop/manufacture these trucks in the USA; just too expensive. Unless of course, the whole thing is Gov funded.
I do see that this is just the doorway to the future. Fully electric and robotic trucks @ the ports. Those operators make a lot of $$ & get great benefits. Not to mention.. Robotic/electric trucks are far more efficient. I know that the article doesn’t mention robotics.
$23.6 million doesn’t seem like near enough actually. And split 4 ways it seems even less.
I thought BYD was a Chinese car company, (Build Your Dreams).
I’m sure automation will factor into this too. If anything is going to get automated it’s going to be these “off public roads” ports trucks. (Probably yard switchers and mules next) electric trucks make a lot of sense in a small area like a port where they’ll only put on a hundred miles a day. So I kinda support this. (Never mind nobody ever factors in where the electricity comes from or how much pollution comes from generation)
Or the mining to get the raw material to make batteries