WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $102 million to build an electric truck freight corridor along the U.S. West Coast.
The West Coast Truck Charging and Fueling Corridor Project, managed by the California Department of Transportation, will deploy charging and hydrogen fueling stations for medium- and heavy-duty electric trucks along 2,500 miles of freight corridors in California, Oregon and Washington, according to the grant application.
The project will allow “emissions-free movement of goods” along the corridor and will connect major ports, freight centers and agricultural regions between the U.S. borders with Mexico and Canada. Construction of the charging stations is expected to start in 2026.
“Decarbonizing the transportation and goods movement sectors is essential for fighting the climate crisis and protecting public health in communities along busy corridors,” said U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif.
“To successfully meet California’s critical climate goals, we need to scale up our charging and fueling infrastructure up and down the state through transformative projects like the West Coast Truck Charging and Fueling Corridor Project.”
The West Coast project was by far the largest grant awarded among 51 electric vehicle (EV) charging projects in 29 states and the District of Columbia, totaling $521 million, announced on Tuesday by DOT.
Money for the grants comes from the CFI grant program, established by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The program provides $2.5 billion over five years to fund EV charging and alternative-fueling infrastructure to help meet the Biden administration’s goal of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from cars and trucks.
“The Biden-Harris Administration has taken action to ensure that America leads the EV revolution, and the historic infrastructure package includes resources to support a nationwide EV charger network so that all drivers have an accessible, reliable, and convenient way to charge their vehicles,” said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Also among the EV infrastructure awards is $11.8 million for Atlanta’s PowerUp program, which would help accommodate the city’s light- and heavy-duty truck fleets, and $4.2 million for the Southeast Ohio Public Energy Council to install eight EV charging stations along highways in Dayton, Athens and Logan for medium- and heavy-duty EV trucks.
Controversial programs get support
The West Coast freight corridor award will help create both charging stations and hydrogen fueling stations to “support the emissions-free movement of goods locally, regionally, nationally and internationally,” according to the California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office.
The state sees the grant as also supporting California’s progressive zero-emission truck policies, including its Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) and Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) programs, which require an increasing percentage of both truck sales and new truck purchases to be zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs).
“In 2023, one out of six new medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold in California were zero-emission vehicles, exceeding the state’s ZEV sales goals two years ahead of schedule,” according to a statement from Newsom’s office.
In May, a group of 17 states sued to stop the ACF while California awaits a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency. The lawsuit parallels a similar 19-state suit filed last year to stop the ACT. Opponents of the two programs contend that they effectively constitute a costly national regulation due to the size of the state and its economic impact.
Newsom, who welcomed the grant, disagrees.
“From installing truck chargers to improving our airports, this latest federal funding is another opportunity for America’s exports to look west for moving freight while fighting our climate crisis,” he said in a statement.
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