Southern California Association of Governments recognizes innovative Clean Truck Fund for helping to promote cleaner air at port complex

The Southern California Association of Governments have given an award to the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles for efforts to fund and incentivize the transition to cleaner trucks. The two ports share a goal of zero-emissions trucking by 2035.

The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles have received a top honor from the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) for the ports’ unprecedented Clean Truck Fund (CTF) initiative. The program helps fund and incentivize the changeover to cleaner trucks serving the San Pedro Bay port complex, and is part of the ports’ broader efforts to achieve zero-emissions drayage trucking by 2035. 

“The communities of Southern California deserve the cleanest fleet of drayage trucks in the world, and the San Pedro Bay ports are committed to that goal,” said Long Beach Harbor Commission President Bobby Olvera Jr. “We thank the Southern California Association of Governments for recognizing the ports’ noteworthy efforts to transition to zero-emissions trucks.”

“The Clean Truck Fund allows the ports to move forward aggressively to decarbonize goods movement, by financially supporting the purchase of cleaner trucks and creation of the supporting infrastructure,” said Port of Long Beach CEO Mario Cordero. “As we bring clean air benefits throughout the region, we’re grateful for this honor from SCAG.”

“The creation of the Clean Truck Fund was a bold, necessary step in our efforts to curb truck-related greenhouse gases and nitrogen oxide emissions at our ports,” said Los Angeles Harbor Commission President Lucille Roybal-Allard. “It’s an honor to be recognized for our efforts around this industry-leading program that promotes cleaner air and more sustainable goods movement.” 

“We appreciate the recognition of our efforts to incentivize zero-emission truck manufacturing, as well as support trucking companies’ transition from diesel to cleaner technologies,” said Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka. “Together with private industry, we are working to help make these future trucks commercially available and affordable.”
 
Created to help accelerate the development of zero-emission (ZE) technology, the CTF collects a rate of $10 per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) on loaded import and export cargo containers hauled by drayage trucks as they enter or leave container terminals. Rate collection began in April 2022.

Through its first 24 months at the two ports, the CTF collected a total of $153.7 million, funds which are being allocated to support incentives for purchase of ZE drayage trucks and related charging infrastructure.

The CTF program builds on the ports’ original Clean Truck Program approved in 2008, which mandated the phase-out of older, more polluting trucks serving the San Pedro Bay port complex. Since that time, air pollution from trucks at the complex is down more than 90%. 

Today, the vast majority of 23,000+ trucks in the ports’ drayage truck registry are diesel-fueled, which the CTF aims to change through the transition to ZE trucks that eliminate emissions at the tailpipe.

The 2024 SCAG Sustainability Awards recognize projects, plans, programs that use innovative planning to improve the mobility, livability, prosperity and sustainability of the Southern California region. The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles garnered the award this year in the Clean Cities: Alternative Fuels and Infrastructure category.