Clean Energy 101: Electric Trucks

The document outlines the transition to electric trucks across passenger pickups, delivery vans, box trucks, and heavy-duty rigs in North America, highlighting that several segments are economically viable for electrification now and could significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

• The 'Run on Less – Electric' demonstration conducted by RMI and the North American Council on Freight Efficiency (NACFE) in 2021 concluded that four specific trucking segments—terminal tractors, heavy-duty regional haul tractors, medium-duty box trucks, and vans and step vans—are currently capable of being economically electrified.
• Electrifying the van and step van market in the US and Canada, which is projected to grow to 8 million vehicles by 2030, could prevent nearly 43.5 million tons of annual greenhouse gas emissions. These vehicles are particularly suited for electrification due to their use in last-mile delivery, which minimizes range challenges, and a total cost of ownership that is reaching parity with internal combustion engines.
• Medium-duty box trucks in the US and Canada, numbering just under 400,000, are considered fully electrifiable because they typically travel fewer than 100 miles per day. Full electrification of this segment would save over 7.6 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually.
• While heavy-duty tractor-trailers present challenges due to load weight and range, NACFE estimates that 70 percent of these trucks in the US and Canada could be electrified, potentially avoiding nearly 29 million tons of annual greenhouse gas emissions. An RMI study specifically found that 49 percent of heavy-duty trucks in California and New York operate on routes short enough to be served by currently available or soon-to-be-available electric trucks.
• Significant barriers to widespread adoption include the need to redesign depots and parking lots for charging infrastructure and a discrepancy between vehicle lifespans (15 to 20 years) and battery lifespans (5 to 10 years).

APA

RMI (2022). Clean Energy 101: Electric Trucks. https://rmi.org/resources/clean-energy-101-electric-trucks/

Chicago

RMI. Clean Energy 101: Electric Trucks. 2022. https://rmi.org/resources/clean-energy-101-electric-trucks/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Clean Energy 101: Electric Trucks |date=11 May 2022 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/clean-energy-101-electric-trucks/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2022clean, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Clean Energy 101: Electric Trucks}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2022}, month = may, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/clean-energy-101-electric-trucks/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }