The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has launched the Cleaner Trucks Initiative (CTI) to further decrease NOx emissions from on-highway heavy-duty trucks and engines. The CTI will include a future rulemaking that will update the existing NOx standard which was last set in 2001 while also streamlining compliance and certification... Read more →

Ballard Power Systems has successfully closed a strategic collaboration transaction with Weichai Power Co., Ltd., initially announced in August. (Earlier post.) This strategic collaboration with Weichai—a leading automotive equipment manufacturer specializing in the production of powertrains, automobiles, intelligent logistics, automotive parts and components—underscores our high conviction in the opportunity for... Read more →

The number of battery-electric buses ordered in Europe more than doubled in 2017 compared to 2016, reaching 1,031 vehicles, according to a new analysis by environmental NGO Transport & Environment. T&E estimates this to be equivalent to around 9% market share of new registrations in 2018. The are currently about... Read more →

Greenlots, a global provider of EV charging software and solutions, will collaborate with Volvo Trucks to deploy charging infrastructure for electric trucks operating out of warehouses in Southern California. This is the first heavy-duty fleet-charging project stemming from a significant public-private partnership with the California Air Resources Board (CARB). CARB... Read more →

The California Energy Commission approved an $8-million grant to Equilon Enterprises—a fully owned subsidiary of Shell Oil—to develop a high-capacity hydrogen fueling station to service and promote the expansion of zero-emission fuel cell electric Class 8 drayage trucks at the Port of Long Beach. The station is to dispense enough... Read more →

In response what it said is widespread interest from European customers, Nikola Motor Company has designed a hydrogen-electric truck for European markets. Reservations for the Nikola Tre (means “Three” in Norwegian) are now open at www.nikolamotor.com/tre. Guests at Nikola World in Phoenix in April 2019 will be able to view... Read more →

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced settlements with two interstate trucking companies which will pay $225,000 in penalties to resolve violations of California’s Truck and Bus Regulation. The companies failed to install particulate filters on some of their heavy-duty diesel trucks and failed to verify that trucks they hired... Read more →

The City of Westminster and operator Veolia have ordered a retrofit of 92 Refuse Collection Vehicles (RCVs) for the upcoming Ultra-low Emission Zone in London. As the first Euro VI RCV fleet retrofit, the combination of Amminex, a Faurecia company (earlier post), and Eminox technology (earlier post) has removed the... Read more →

Earlier this month, members of the European Parliament’s Environment Committee proposed a higher target (35%) than the European Commission (30%) for new heavy-duty trucks to reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, with an intermediate target of 20% by 2025. Manufacturers will also have to ensure that zero- and low-emission... Read more →

Ballard Power Systems will provide fuel cell modules to power four UPS delivery trucks as part of a project being managed by the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) and partially funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). CARB has announced a preliminary funding award of $5.8 million... Read more →

Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) has launched the new SoCalGas Truck Loan Program. The program allows qualified fleet owners the opportunity to try out the latest in heavy-duty natural gas truck technology by test-driving a 12L near-zero truck. This “try before you buy” program provides fleet owners with the opportunity... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Trucks has delivered a fully electric eActros (earlier post) for on-road testing to EDEKA. The German retail association will be testing a 25-tonne truck with refrigerated body for one year in Berlin, where it will be used to transport fresh, temperature-sensitive foodstuffs in Germany's capital. The daily route from... Read more →

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded $9.6 million in Diesel Emission Reduction Act (DERA) grants to public and private partners in California. The funds will be used to retrofit and replace old, polluting diesel vehicles and equipment, including school buses, heavy-duty trucks, tractors and port equipment. The DERA program... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Trucks has delivered another all-electric eActros (earlier post) to a customer for on-road testing: Meyer-Logistik. For one year, the company based in Friedrichsdorf in Hessen will now be test-driving a 25-tonne truck with a refrigeration unit for transporting temperature-sensitive foodstuffs from the warehouse to different supermarkets in the center... Read more →

Ballard Power Systems will provide fuel cell modules to power two port terminal yard trucks as part of a project being managed by GTI and partially funded by the California Air Resources Board (CARB). (Earlier post.) CARB has preliminarily awarded $5.7 million dollars to GTI for the Zero Emissions for... Read more →

The Volvo Group—a global manufacturer of trucks, buses, construction equipment and marine and industrial engines, but not Volvo Cars—has reported that it has detected that an emissions control component used in certain markets is degrading more quickly than expected, which could cause the engines to exceed emissions limits for nitrogen... Read more →

AxleTech, a provider of specialty powertrain solutions, is developing a heavy-duty e-powertrain system with Thor Trucks, a fleet-focused transportation lab building fully electric commercial trucks. AxleTech and Thor Trucks will integrate AxleTech’s e-axle technology with Thor’s proprietary battery technology to create a fully electric commercial vehicle powertrain. Thor Trucks is... Read more →

EMT, the transport company of the Spanish capital Madrid, is set to receive another 276 Mercedes-Benz Citaro NGT urban buses with natural gas drive in the next two years. This will be the fourth major order from Madrid in quick succession. EMT placed its first order two years ago for... Read more →

As part of an innovative partnership between the Volvo Group, California’s South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD), and industry leaders in transportation and electrical charging infrastructure (earlier post), Volvo Trucks will introduce all-electric truck demonstrators in California next year, and commercialize them in North America in 2020. The California... Read more →

At IAA Commercial Vehicles, Dutch truck manufacturer DAF—a division of Paccar—is showcasing the LF Electric, CF Electric and CF Hybrid Innovation trucks. vocational product range that set the standard in quality, low operating cost and vehicle performance. The DAF LF series if for distribution transport, while the versatile CF is... Read more →

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) announced up to $205 million in grants for projects designed to accelerate the adoption of clean freight technologies and reduce air pollution caused by the movement of goods throughout the state. Eleven projects will receive $150 million from California Climate Investments—using proceeds from the... Read more →

Toyota announced that it will provide its hydrogen fuel cell technology to Caetanobus SA in Portugal. Toyota will supply its fuel cell systems, including fuel cell stacks, hydrogen tanks and other key components to Caetanobus SA—the Portuguese bus engineering and production company—to build hydrogen fuel cell city buses. The first... Read more →

BYD has completed its latest US investment, a new $5-million 100,000-square-foot warehouse for its Lancaster manufacturing plant. This is the firm’s fourth expansion of its current manufacturing campus in Los Angeles County, bringing its total investment in Lancaster facilities to more than $53 million. The new warehouse provides additional space... Read more →

Ballard Power Systems unveiled its next-generation high-performance liquid-cooled fuel cell stack, the FCgen-LCS, at the IAA Commercial Vehicles Trade Fair and Convention. The FCgen-LCS features important design and performance enhancements, while also offering a reduction in total-cost-of-ownership. This stack will be a core technology component of Ballard’s 8th-generation power module... Read more →

Renault Trucks is continuing its research into improving the energy efficiency of diesel trucks. (Earlier post.) With Optifuel Lab 3, the laboratory vehicle developed as part of the FALCON collaborative project, the manufacturer aims to reduce fuel consumption by 13% compared with a standard Renault Trucks T and trailer. Optifuel... Read more →

Continental and Knorr-Bremse AG have entered into a partnership to develop a complete system solution for highly automated driving (HAD) in commercial vehicles, initially focused on automated convoy driving (platooning). Later development work will deal with automated driving on the freeway (“Highway Pilot”). The cooperation includes all functions for driver... Read more →

Cummins Inc. signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with KAMAZ for the development of electrified power solutions for a new product line of KAMAZ battery-powered vehicles. Currently, KAMAZ, a Russia-based truck manufacturer, is actively developing a new electrified portfolio of battery-powered trucks and buses, while Cummins continues to expand its... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Swiss hydrogen company H2 Energy (H2E). Beginning in 2019 and over a five-year period, Hyundai Motor and H2 Energy will provide 1,000 heavy-duty fuel cell electric trucks (earlier post) and an adequate supply chain for renewable hydrogen. The... Read more →

During the IAA 2018 from 20th to 27th September 2018 in Hanover, MAN will present a fully electric eTruck solo distributor chassis with a swap body frame and a 6x2 axle configuration. The 26-tonne truck, based on the MAN TGM, incorporates batteries that can be installed under the cab and... Read more →

The A35 Brebemi autostrada in northern Italy will become the latest location for road electrification technology, and Scania trucks fitted with Siemens pantographs and power connections are in line to carry out the initial trials. The trucks receive electricity from a pantograph power collector that is mounted on the frame... Read more →

Daimler Trucks & Buses is investing in the US company Proterra Inc. Martin Daum, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG with responsibility for Daimler Trucks & Buses, made the announcement at the 67th IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hannover. Proterra was founded in 2004 with headquarters in California... Read more →

Cummins Inc. unveiled PowerDrive, a suite of plug-in hybrid electric powertrain solutions spanning light-, medium- and heavy-duty applications, at the 2018 IAA Commercial Vehicle Show. The Cummins PowerDrive offers both parallel and series capabilities. The PowerDrive replaces the conventional transmission and switches in real time between two hybrid and two... Read more →

TRATON AG, formerly Volkswagen Truck & Bus AG, announced two strategic partnerships. The first is with Solera, to develop smart and secure solutions to answer challenges of transport and logistics customers. The second is an expansion of TRATON’s long-term partnership with Sinotruk to establish a joint venture to localize a... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Trucks is starting practical trials for its all-electric heavy-duty eActros truck. The retail and logistics service provider Hermes is the first of 20 customers in different sectors who will integrate the electric truck into their fleets. Each customer will use a near-series 18 or 25-tonner in their normal operations... Read more →

TRATON AG—formerly Volkswagen Truck & Bus—and Hino Motors Ltd. announced new details on their strategic partnership, announced earlier this year (earlier post). Both partners have agreed on two strategic initiatives: to join forces in e-mobility and the plan to establish a procurement joint venture. In e-mobility, TRATON and Hino plan... Read more →

The California Air Resources Board (CARB) has preliminarily awarded $41 million to the Port of Los Angeles (POLA) for the Zero-Emission and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities (ZANZEFF) project. The total project cost for this initial phase is $82,568,872, with partners providing 50.2%, or $41,446,612 in match funding. CARB issued its... Read more →

A new Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) study by Ricardo for the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership (LowCVP) across a broad range of vehicle sectors finds that the relative contribution of each vehicle life cycle stage is highly dependent on the vehicle type and powertrain technology as well as what assumptions are... Read more →

Germans would increasingly feel safer with fully automated, driverless trucks on the road, according to a survey conducted by Bosch and Innofact AG in the lead-up to the IAA Commercial Vehicles in Hannover. While almost 40% of respondents would rather that trucks have a human driver at the wheel, already... Read more →

Volvo Trucks unveiled Vera: an autonomous, electric vehicle that can operate with significantly less exhaust emissions and low noise levels. Vera is controlled and monitored via a cloud-based service, and has the potential to make transportation safer, cleaner and more efficient. The driveline and battery pack are of the same... Read more →

State government agencies and companies signed on to a new program intended toaccelerate the deployment of zero and near-zero emission commercial vehicles and technologies. The “Global Commercial Vehicle Drive to Zero” pledge is championed by CALSTART, a non-profit industry organization with more than 190-member companies, aimed at reducing emissions from... Read more →

A two-year study led by researchers at the University of Toronto has found large trucks to be the greatest contributors to black carbon emissions close to major roadways. The study is published in the ACS journal Environmental Science & Technology. The comprehensive study led by U of T Professor Greg... Read more →

The US Department of Transportation has released a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) to assess various aspects of in-service truck platoons that are delivering commercial goods by a fleet operator on their common delivery routes over an extended time. The objectives of this BAA are to develop an innovative and synergistic... Read more →

Jacobs Vehicle Systems, a leading manufacturer of heavy-duty diesel engine retarding systems and valve actuation systems, will introduce its new Cylinder Deactivation (CDA) technology to the European market at IAA Commercial Vehicles 2018 (Hannover, Germany, 20-27 September). CDA uses the proven componentry of Jacobs’ High Power Density (HPD) engine brake,... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz Trucks unveiled the new Actros truck, featuring Active Drive Assist, with which Mercedes-Benz Trucks puts partially automated driving into series production. The new Active Drive Assist can brake, accelerate and steer independently. The new Actros can be ordered as of the IAA 2018 Commercial Vehicles Show and the first... Read more →

Walmart Canada plans to power its fleet using 100% alternative power by 2028. To meet that goal, the company has announced plans to acquire an additional 30 Tesla 18-wheeler semi-trucks, building on its original order of 10 trucks in November 2017. With 40 Tesla Semis in total, the company will... Read more →

SmartTruck, a small business in Greenville, SC, recently completed its first detailed unsteady analysis using modeling and simulation at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and has become the first company to request certification from the EPA through computational fluid dynamics (CFD). In 2016, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)... Read more →

Chinese manufacturer Yutong is placing 22 hydrogen fuel cell buses into service in Zhengzhou (two now, 20 to follow) as well as the first batch of 25 units to Zhangjiakou. As the host city of the 24th Winter Olympic Games, Zhangjiakou aims to create a green winter Olympics and is... Read more →

The Société de Transport de Montréal (STM) and the Société de transport de Laval (STL) have awarded New Flyer a contract for 40 forty-foot, zero-emission, battery-electric Xcelsior CHARGE heavy-duty transit buses, marking the largest-yet battery-electric bus contract in Canada. The buses will use depot-based charging to slow-charge the buses, which... Read more →

Hyundai Motor Company completed South Korea’s first domestic highway journey with an autonomously navigated semi-trailer truck. Hyundai’s Xcient truck drove approximately 40 km (25 miles) on the highway between Uiwang and Incheon, carrying a large semi-trailer simulating cargo transportation. This successful demonstration proves that innovative autonomous driving technology can be... Read more →

Lightning Systems, a developer of electric powertrains for commercial fleets, introduced a new all-electric Low Cab Forward model for commercial and government fleets in the Class 6 segment. The Lightning Electric heavy-duty powertrain will be available in the 19,501-26,000 pound gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) (Class 6) and will deliver... Read more →