Port, Partners Drive Forward to Zero-Emissions with Truck Charging Stations

The Port of Long Beach is driving toward a zero-emissions future, with a focus on electric trucks and the stations where they can recharge their batteries.

Several companies are partnering with the port to meet the accelerating demand for heavy-duty electric trucks by installing charging stations within the harbor area and beyond. Their work will help the port to meet a goal of 100 public stations available in the harbor area by 2028.

“We are forging ahead with our pursuit to become the world’s first zero-emissions port, but we can’t do it alone,” said Port of Long Beach CEO Mario Cordero. “We hope trucking companies and drivers will be encouraged to purchase electric vehicles just as additional investments are made in charging stations, not only at the Port but also throughout the region.”

Investing in charging infrastructure is essential to transitioning to zero-emissions drayage. It reduces port-related greenhouse gas emissions and puts the port on a path toward achieving a goal of zero-emissions for cargo-handling equipment by 2030 and for drayage trucks by 2035. For trucks, it’s key that charging stations become available in the harbor area, and along well-traveled truck routes in the region as well.

In its press release POLB stated, “phasing out older, more polluting trucks has enhanced air quality at the San Pedro Bay ports since the original clean truck program was initiated in 2008. Diesel particulate emissions from trucks have been cut by as much as 97% compared to levels in 2005.”

Heavy-duty trucks were able to plug in and power up at the Port of Long Beach for the first time in November 2022 through a partnership with EV Connect to open one of the first publicly accessible, heavy-duty truck charging stations in the nation.

Equipped with two charging units, the station is located at the clean truck program terminal access center, 1265 Harbor Ave. Those registered in the Ports Drayage Truck Registry can use the chargers for free, with a limit of two hours.

The Port plans to eventually build additional charging units at the Terminal Access Center, along with a second depot at Pier B Street and Carrack Avenue.

Additionally, long-term investments are underway to ensure energy is available to power eTruck fleets well into the future, and financial assistance is being offered to help assist drivers with purchasing electric drayage trucks.

The latest available figures show there were 213 zero-emissions trucks registered to operate at the San Pedro Bay complex by the close of 2023. That figure is anticipated to grow exponentially over the next decade as state regulators require new trucks entering drayage to be zero-emissions.

Trucking companies and drivers serving the ports complex face a deadline to go emissions-free by 2035 under a mandate by the California Air Resources Board, which aligns with a longtime goal set by the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles through the Clean Air Action Plan.

Details: Read more at: http://tinyurl.com/port-truck-charging-stations