| ACT Expo showcases truck transformation |
America's trucking industry has an emissions problem.
Medium- and heavy-duty trucks represent less than 5 percent of vehicles on the road but account for 23 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. Steering the trucking industry away from the status quo and toward zero-emission alternatives has become a pressing matter.
That urgency was apparent all week at the Alternative Clean Transportation Expo, better known as the ACT Expo, where leading truck manufacturers and suppliers showcased dozens of battery electric and hydrogen fuel cell options. My colleagues Jerry Hirsch and Molly Boigon filed dispatches all week from what's become a flagship industry event.
Here's a look at what they found:
■ EV charging and hydrogen fueling infrastructure gaps are complicating efforts to electrify fleets. It's a bottleneck that's discouraging potential vehicle buyers.
■ Hydrogen has become more than a hot topic. Major companies are making firm plans. Hyundai launched a fuel cell strategy centered on California. Toyota said it will put fuel cell powertrains in Kenworth and Peterbilt vehicles. Toyota also said it will create a hydrogen power kit based on its Mirai passenger-car technology.
■ On the battery electric side, Freightliner-owned Daimler unveiled a new medium-duty truck brand, and PepsiCo said it will enter at least one of its Tesla Semi trucks in an event that will shed light on the Class 8 vehicle's performance.
That's for starters. There are more developments from Bosch and Plus on the driver-assistance front and updates from Michigan-based battery supplier Our Next Energy. You can find our comprehensive coverage of the ACT Expo here.
— Pete Bigelow
