NATSO, SIGMA Statement on National Zero-Emission Freight Corridor Strategy

ALEXANDRIA, VA. -- NATSO, representing truck stops and travel plazas, and SIGMA: America’s leading fuel marketers, issued the following statement today in response to the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation’s National Zero-Emission Freight Corridor Strategy, which aims to align investments and deployment of zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicle infrastructure along national freight corridors. The following statement can be attributed to David Fialkov, Executive Vice President of Government Affairs.

“We are grateful that the Biden Administration is recognizing the critical link between how freight moves today and the efficient build out of a nationwide network of charging stations for medium and heavy-duty trucks. For this to work, it needs to impose minimal disruption on how businesses operate today. This plan recognizes that.

“Fuel retailers are at the forefront of investments in new refueling technologies and their requisite infrastructure. We have long held that President Biden’s goal of establishing a nationwide network of electric vehicle charging stations for all vehicle classes is best achieved by harnessing the existing nationwide network of refueling locations.

“Directing states to adopt a phased approach that prioritizes investments along key freight corridors can harness the existing nationwide network of refueling locations along the Interstate Highway System and encourage investment in emerging refueling technology. 

“Many challenges exist to electrifying commercial trucks, including electricity generation and access as well as the need for fuel retailers to generate a return on investment. We appreciate that the Biden Administration has recognized some of these concerns and appears to have developed an iterative and thoughtful approach to directing investment in a medium and heavy-duty charging network. 

“We hope the Administration applies the timelines permeating this strategy to other forthcoming policies that also will influence the heavy-duty refueling market’s decarbonization efforts.”