The UK government invests £200 million to drive innovation and get more zero-emission trucks on the roads. More zero-emission trucks are set to drive on UK roads thanks to a £200 million boost to decarbonize freight vehicles, drive innovation, and create new jobs as part of a week of government action to support the sector.
With heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) alone contributing 20% to all transport emissions across the UK, the £200 million in government funding announced will be invested across four innovative green projects to roll out up to 370 zero-emission HGVs and help set road freight on the path towards net zero, driving innovation and creating new jobs.
Delivered in partnership with Innovate UK, the £200 million government investment from the zero-emission HGV and infrastructure demonstrator program will also deliver around 57 refueling and electric charging sites, providing the crucial infrastructure to help the haulage sector decarbonize.
Roads Minister Richard Holden visited Voltempo in Birmingham – one of the recipients of the £200 million – whose eFREIGHT 2030 project is set to create up to 200 new jobs by 2030 and provide Birmingham with one of the UK’s first electric vehicle charging hubs dedicated to HGVs.
The funding will help popular grocery companies like Sainsbury’s and Marks & Spencer lower their transport emissions while protecting them from rising delivery costs associated with changing petrol and diesel prices. This could help prevent price hikes across supermarkets, allowing people to save money on food and groceries to help with the cost of living.
This funding comes as part of the government’s commitment to make the right long-term decisions for a brighter future. Decarbonizing the freight sector is vital to building a sustainable future for the industry and achieving our net zero commitments reasonably and pragmatically that lowers costs, create jobs, and grows the economy, according to the UK government.
Further to Voltempo, the other projects that will receive a share of the £200 million boost are Project Electric Freightway by GRIDSERVE, Project Zero Emission North (ZEN) Freight and Hydrogen Aggregated Logistics (HyHAUL) by Protium.
Last week also saw the publication of the zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) mandate. This sets out the percentage of new zero-emission cars and vans that manufacturers will be required to produce each year up to 2030 as part of a new pragmatic and realistic pathway to 100% zero-emission vehicle sales from 2035.
Source: UK government
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