The U.S. Department of Transportation has approved $102 million for a multi-state West Coast corridor to promote zero-emission freight transportation locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

California, along with Oregon and Washington, has secured $102 million to install charging stations and hydrogen refueling stations for trucks along Interstate 5 and other major freight corridors.

“The Biden-Harris administration is helping California build our clean transportation infrastructure faster. This latest federal funding is another opportunity for America’s exports to look west in freight transportation while tackling our climate crisis,” said California Governor Gavin Newsom.

The West Coast Truck Charging and Fueling Corridor Project is an innovative, multi-state collaborative effort to accelerate the adoption of zero-emission vehicles in the transportation and logistics industry. Funding is provided through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021.

“By focusing on economic prosperity and climate action, we can combine our efforts on sustainability and equity while improving our nation’s transportation network,” said Caltrans Director Tony Tavares. “This latest federal funding is another opportunity for America’s exports to look westward in freight transportation while combating climate change.”

The result of the contract is new, publicly accessible charging stations and hydrogen filling stations. These stations will support emission-free transport of goods locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. Construction of the new charging stations is expected to begin in 2026.

“This federal funding will enable truck drivers to drive zero-emission trucks from San Diego to Seattle,” said Patty Monahan, commissioner of the California Energy Commission. “By reducing pollution to zero in this critical sector with zero-emission trucks, we can bring cleaner air to the communities that need it most.”

“Our success with this grant is due to the strong partnership between the West Coast states and our national leadership in reducing emissions from transportation,” said Kris Strickler, director of the Oregon Department of Transportation. “Heavy trucks are a critical part of our economy, and this federal funding will give us the ability to meet the transportation industry’s need for more modern infrastructure.”

“We are pleased to have been able to partner with Caltrans, the California Energy Commission and ODOT to receive this award. This coordinated effort across the three states will further advance all of our efforts to strengthen charging infrastructure along the West Coast as a whole,” said Roger Millar, Washington State Secretary of Transportation. “The award supports Washington’s climate work by enabling further investment in building robust and sustainable electric vehicle charging infrastructure across Washington.”

The project builds on years of partnership and planning to support zero-emission trucking infrastructure on the West Coast, including public-private collaboration and coordination among the three states’ electric utilities. The new charging and fueling stations will support California’s implementation of the Advanced Clean Trucks standard, a world-leading policy first introduced in 2020 that requires an increasing percentage of truck sales to be ZEVs. In 2021, Oregon and Washington became the second and third states, after California, to adopt this policy. In 2023, one in six new medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold in California will be a zero-emission vehicle, exceeding the ACT’s ZEV sales goals two years ahead of schedule.

This funding will also support implementation of the Advanced Clean Fleets standard that California is adopting in 2023. Under the ACF, fleets across the state will gradually transition to ZEVs, and by 2036, all new medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold will be ZEVs.

Infrastructure development under the project will build on the significant progress made in infrastructure for light-duty ZEVs. With over 14,000 DC fast chargers, the three states have one-third of the publicly accessible light-duty vehicle fast chargers in the country.

Trucks account for 6% of total traffic on California’s roads, but they are responsible for over 35% of traffic-related nitrogen oxide emissions and a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions on the state’s roads.

Communities along truck corridors and near warehouses with heavy truck traffic face disproportionate health burdens. This grant funding supports corridors with some of the worst air pollution in the country.

Interstate 5 connects metropolitan areas, regional highways, and globally important ports such as the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and the Northwest Seaport Alliance (Ports of Seattle and Tacoma). In 2023, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach handled 29% of all containerized imports and exports by water in the United States, and over $73 billion of international trade flowed through the Northwest Seaport Alliance. Interstate 5 and nearby border highways are also critical for freight movement at the borders with Mexico and Canada.

Learn more about transportation electrification efforts at Caltrans, CEC, ODOT and WSDOT.

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