Mike Nichols was behind the wheel of his diesel big rig hauling a load across Wisconsin as he pondered doing his job with an all-electric semitruck.
“The fact of the matter is it wouldn’t work,” he told The Washington Times. “It’s not ready for prime time.”
Truckers nationwide are expressing similar misgivings about what they say is a logistical nightmare: the Biden administration’s new rules to make heavy-duty trucks start going electric.
The industry warns President Biden is putting the cart before the horse and could send consumer prices soaring by upending the transportation sector.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s policies, unveiled last week, are part of Mr. Biden’s climate change agenda. The new rules require roughly 25% of new semitrucks or similar heavy-duty vehicles to be electric by 2032. The regulations came on the heels of more stringent rules for passenger cars, requiring up to two-thirds of new models by 2032 to be all-electric or hybrid.
“Even if they gave me the truck and paid for all the changes that I’d have to make, I’d still refuse because it wouldn’t work,” Mr. Nichols said. “It’s wishful thinking on the part of the administration that they’re going to mandate manufacturers make these things. No one is going to buy them.”
Mr. Nichols pulls a pneumatic tanker — or a “silo on wheels,” as he puts it — that typically hauls flour, rice, wheat or other grains for trips that range from 200 to 1,000 miles throughout the Midwest. He can travel more than 1,000 miles on a single tank of diesel. Transferring product to and from his tanker also requires hours of fuel.
Driving the same route that he was currently conducting with an electric rig would likely mean half a dozen charging stops spread out over multiple days vs. a two-day trip with one tank of diesel.
“Anybody who drives a truck knows it’s not going to work,” Mr. Nichols said. “If the repercussions or consequences weren’t so serious, it would almost be a joke.”
An EV transition contains a myriad of roadblocks that are exacerbated for truckers. Those include reduced range, more refueling time, a lack of available chargers, unreliable performance in extreme weather and lighter load capacities due to EVs’ heavier weights. Industry leaders warn these are factors that won’t be overcome in just eight years, not to mention the higher costs of EVs.
The average long-haul semitruck — trucks with a sleeper cabin — that is diesel-powered was $160,000 in 2022 compared to its all-electric equivalent of $457,000, according to a Department of Energy report. Diesel-powered day cabs — trucks without a sleeper cabin — were $117,000 vs. its $211,000 electric counterpart.
The long-haul electric trucks had a max range of 500 miles compared to diesel trucks that can travel 1,000 to 2,000 miles on a single tank.
American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear assailed the mandate target dates as “entirely unachievable given the current state of zero-emission technology, the lack of charging infrastructure and restrictions on the power grid.”
Long haulers would also need their own designated overnight spot to recharge, but drivers already face a parking shortage just to pull over for the night to sleep. There is only one safe parking spot for every 11 trucks on the road, according to the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), which represents truckers like Mr. Nichols who own their rig and haul for various clients.
“It’s very frustrating because a lot of this stuff that they’re demanding or they’re mandating for truckers to do is not out there,” OOIDA Executive Vice President Lewie Pugh told The Times. “It’s not ready and it’s not usable.”
Mr. Pugh said his trade group was not consulted by the administration before the EPA finalized the regulations. He accused officials of being more concerned about Mr. Biden’s green agenda than its real-world impacts.
“It seems to me that the only people they’re interested in talking to or listening to are extreme environmental activists,” Mr. Pugh said.
White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi did not respond to a request for comment.
The EPA told The Times in a statement that it considered the factors highlighted by truckers before finalizing its rule and that the agency “received extensive input” from industry representatives.
“The engagement with the trucking industry included meeting with OOIDA, public testimony from OOIDA and written comments provided by OOIDA,” an EPA spokesperson said.
The agency said it will “actively engage and monitor the progress being made” by the trucking industry that will “help inform the EPA regarding whether any potential adjustments to the Phase 3 program are warranted.”
EPA Administrator Michael Regan, speaking with reporters last week, downplayed industry concerns.
“There’s a list of options that truck driver owners and operators can choose from that give the customers the choice opportunities, while we do not sacrifice the very stringent environmental goal that we have set,” he said.
Wayne Winegarden, a senior fellow in business and economics at the Pacific Research Institute think tank, criticized the administration’s “disingenuous” logic as an “illusion that if we build it, they’ll come.” He predicted consumers will be met with an inflation gut punch similar to the supply chain disruptions during the pandemic once the EPA standards begin to phase in starting in 2027.
“What would have to happen is the price of diesel vehicles will have to rise enough so that enough people would be willing to forgo the diesel vehicle and purchase the electric one,” Mr. Winegarden said. “You’re creating a huge artificial shortage of trucks, and the [pandemic] lockdowns are a great case study for what happens when trucks can’t deliver the goods.”
The EPA’s rules allow various zero-emission vehicles to meet its goals, including hybrids, plug-in hybrid electrics, battery electrics and hydrogen fuel cells. It applies to delivery trucks, refuse haulers, public utility trucks, and transit, shuttle, and school buses.
Of the more than 12 million trucks on U.S. roads, the Environmental Defense Fund estimates there are less than 13,000 electric models, which range from delivery vans to tractor-trailers.
Concerned industry leaders say the administration should target trucks with local day routes that can easily return at night to recharge, such as those used by Amazon that go roughly 250 miles on a charge. Roughly half of trips made by truckers are more than 500 miles, and 25% are over 1,000 miles, according to OOIDA.