OLYMPIA, Wash. -- The Washington Trucking Associations (WTA) has urged leaders in Washington state again to delay the enforcement of California's Advanced Clean Truck (ACT) rules.
This development occurred after both Oregon and Vermont announced plans Thursday to delay the ACT enforcement. Currently, Maryland, Massachusetts, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Vermont have pushed back on implementing these rules, and the WTA hopes that Washington state will do the same.
The common concern voiced by each of these states, as well as the WTA, emphasizes a lack of charging infrastructure and technological advancements.
"WTA recognizes the importance of using clean energy for our environment. Unfortunately, some segments of industry, including trucking, are not there yet technologically. You cannot force heavy duty EV trucks into widespread existence. Additional time, investments and infrastructure is needed to make this work," WTA President & CEO Sheri Call said.
Meanwhile, Caroline Halter, the Communications Manager of the Washington Department of Ecology's Climate Pollution Reduction Program, has a more optimistic outlook on the implementation of ACT.
"If you look at the commercial vans and trucks that are covered by this policy, we're seeing high rates of adoption -- so much so that manufacturers are actually on track to exceed most of Advanced Clean Trucks' requirements in 2026," Halter told us.
However, these statistics don't apply with regard to semi-trucks.
"The only category where that's not the case is the semi-truck category, and we're lowering sales requirements, giving manufacturers three years to make up shortfalls and subsidizing the cost of these vehicles," Halter added.
Despite this, the WTA remains concerned about the process of implementing ACT.
"Charging infrastructure for heavy duty EV trucks is virtually nonexistent in Washington, and Oregon's delayed implementation means I-5 truckers in the Northwest will have minimal charging options. There is no state or federal funding for heavy duty EV truck charging, either. So now Washington has become an outlier, to the detriment of our supply chain and trade-based economy," Call stated.
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