California ports to restrict age of new drayage trucks to fight pollution

Containers at the Port of Long Beach ( Photo: CBP )

Lower age threshold part of ongoing move to reduce emissions.

The two largest ports on the West Coast will increase age restrictions on new trucks entering drayage service as part of a regional plan to improve air quality.

The Port of Long Beach and Port of Los Angeles will require that any new trucks registering for the Port Drayage Truck Registry (PDTR) to be model year 2014 or later, starting October 1.

The new requirement applies only to trucks registering in the PDTR for the first time. Trucks that are already registered will be allowed to continue operating at the ports, as long as they are current on their annual dues and compliant with emission regulations set by the California Air Resources Board.

Both Ports currently require any truck entering container gates to be 2007 model year or later. Of the 17,000 trucks enrolled in the PDTR, about half are 2010 model year or later, the Port of Long Beach said.

The new requirements come after the Ports agreed to update the Clean Air Action Plan last year. The CAAP aims to phase out older trucks with a goal of reaching zero-emissions trucks by 2035.

Other incentives for getting to zero-emissions drayage trucking include waiving registration fees and charging a rate for cargo moves by trucks with exemptions for trucks that meet near-zero and zero-emissions standards.

CAAP has reduced diesel particulate emissions by 87 percent, sulfur dioxide by 97 percent and nitrogen oxide emissions by 58 percent, the Port said.

The Ports recently won grants totaling $91 million to support the development of zero-emissions trucking.