The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is preparing to launch a new incentive program aimed at accelerating the adoption of zero-emission vehicles used in port operations.
The program will make up to $39 million in Environmental Protection Agency grant funding available through point-of-sale vouchers offered in partnership with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and dealers. The incentives are designed to lower the purchase cost of zero-emission drayage trucks and terminal vehicles.
Under the program, a Class 8 drayage truck will be eligible for a voucher worth $230,000, while operators purchasing an off-road terminal truck could receive a discount of $150,000.
The initiative is expected to begin this fall. OEMs will be selected on a rolling basis, depending on the level of sign-ups.
Alongside the vehicle incentive program, the Port Authority is also allocating $5 million for new charging hubs through a separate initiative known as the Green Drayage Accelerator. The charging facilities will be developed within 10 miles of the port, providing additional infrastructure for zero-emission trucks operating in the area.
CALSTART, which will administer the programs, will also develop dashboards to track the new initiatives. Both programs are scheduled to get underway this fall.
“This $45 million partnership with CALSTART puts zero-emission trucks, terminal tractors, and charging infrastructure within reach for the operators who serve this port every day,” Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole said in a Sept. 3 news release.
The Port Authority said the initiatives form part of its broader sustainability strategy and build on previous investments in electric infrastructure. Among those efforts was the opening last year of an electric truck charging station at Port Newark, equipped with four super-fast chargers.
The funding comes from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which allocated nearly $3 billion to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Ports Program for port-related projects across the United States.
The new programs are intended to make zero-emission trucks, terminal tractors and charging infrastructure more accessible to the companies and operators serving the Port of New York and New Jersey, while supporting the port’s longer-term environmental goals.
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