Electrify America selects Long Beach-Wilmington for $25M investment in EV drayage trucks

Electrify America proposed to California Air Resources Board (CARB) earlier this year that the Long Beach – Wilmington community be given Green City status, which would direct $25 million in investment to the region for the specific purpose of supporting adoption of EV drayage trucks.  On June 24th it was announced that the designation has been awarded and investment related to EVs will now begin to flow towards projects in that region of LA County.

READ LAEDC’s SUPPORT LETTER FOR GREEN CITY DESIGNATION 

The air quality issues near LA’s ports complex and freight corridors have been well documented for decades, even with major progress on the greening of the ports.  Now, with this investment, we will finally see the heavy vehicle segment get a boost from new charging infrastructure that will enable logistics and trucking operators to feasibly switch to electric vehicles as they move containers from the ports to local logistics and distribution centers.  Low-to-medium income (LMI) communities near the ports are likely to see the most positive change in air quality, which is a wonderful win for equity in LA County.  But in the bigger picture, the heavy transport sector accounts for 23 percent of vehicle emissions in California (or about 9% of total GHG for California) so this type of investment is impactful.  This announcement signals progress towards meeting California’s 2035 target of moving all drayage trucks to zero emissions.

This investment is also likely to spur demand for EV drayage trucks, which should lead to growth and job creation in LA County’s EV manufacturing sector because several heavy duty EV vehicle makers are located and growing in LA County, including BYD, Xos Trucks and others. The EV industry already employs a significant workforce in LA County.  In fact, LAEDC’s recent report on the California EV industry found that over 120,000 direct jobs already exist in Southern California’s EV industry.

If you would like to be part of the region’s EV industry expansion and success, please get involved in LAEDC’s e4 Mobility Alliance, which serves as a catalyst for industry growth, vehicle adoption, and development of local EV companies and technologies.

Read more about this investment from Electrify America in this article from GreenCarCongress.com


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