Eco-Friendly Freight on Wheels

The Climate Pledge and C40 Cities have launched a pioneering project in India to test electric vehicles (EVs) for transporting goods along the 350-kilometre Bengaluru-Chennai highway. This initiative involves several key players, including Amazon, Ashok Leyland, BillionE, and ChargeZone, and aims to evaluate the practicality and cost savings of using EV trucks for long-distance freight.

Sally Fouts, Global Leader of The Climate Pledge, emphasized the importance of reducing emissions in the freight sector for India to achieve its climate goals, and noted the collaborative effort among vehicle manufacturers, logistics experts, and infrastructure leaders. BillionE plans to operate 20 heavy-duty Ashok Leyland EV trucks for six months, collecting valuable data on the operational, financial, environmental, and social impacts of electric freight transport. Amazon will also utilize the trucks using ChargeZone’s charging facilities.

This project is part of the larger Laneshift initiative, which seeks to foster zero-emission freight globally. Shruti Narayan from C40 Cities expressed enthusiasm for the project, highlighting its potential to demonstrate electric trucks' economic feasibility while supporting national freight electrification goals. Projections indicate that if by 2035, 60% of medium-duty trucks and 35% of heavy-duty trucks on the Bengaluru-Chennai route were electric, it could save 231,000 tons of CO2 emissions and generate significant fuel cost savings.

The initiative aims to create a network of electric freight highways in India, involving various stakeholders to speed up the adoption of electric trucks. Currently, trucks are only a small fraction of India’s vehicle population but cause a disproportionate amount of air pollution, making their electrification vital for reducing overall emissions and improving public health near busy freight routes.

The project is based on extensive consultation with over 50 businesses, financial entities, and government officials, analyzing eight highway corridors before selecting the Bengaluru-Chennai route to kickstart the initiative. Ashok Leyland's Managing Director, Shenu Agarwal, expressed the company's commitment to innovation and sustainability through this project.

The demonstration aims to encourage more businesses to transition to electric trucks, exploring new business models. The results will inform a national EV Highway Roadmap, providing insights for stakeholders to move from demonstration to widespread implementation of electric freight solutions.

Abhinav Singh from Amazon India highlighted the project as a critical step in revolutionizing India's road freight sector, emphasizing that it lays the groundwork for future sustainable logistics and promotes partnerships necessary for a cleaner transportation future.

 

 

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