RHA welcomes Scottish Government HGV Decarbonisation Pathway

The RHA welcomes the Scottish Government’s HGV Decarbonisation Pathway as a pragmatic first step to achieve net zero.

Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Fiona Hyslop announced the pathway today [Tuesday 19 March] which sets out the four challenges posed by a move to zero emission trucks, and how to address these:

· energy infrastructure

· financial models

· confidence in technological and commercial change

· workforce skills

You can read the pathway in full HERE.

The RHA alongside key industry stakeholders have developed these actions to help the sector transition to net zero. Dubbed ‘The Zero-Emission Truck Taskforce’, the RHA and others built a shared understanding of the challenges and opportunities operators will face when making the transition.

RHA Policy Lead for Environment and Vehicles Chris Ashley said:

“This is a welcome first step for transitioning to net zero and marks an important moment in the journey towards decarbonisation.

“Decarbonising lorries whilst maintaining the high levels of service the public expect is complex with many structural barriers, such as financing the transition and providing the required energy infrastructure.

“The Pathway allows Scottish authorities and industry to start navigating the difficult issues that lie ahead and a focus to ensure that businesses, including our vital small businesses, feel supported.”

Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Fiona Hyslop told attendees of the Net Zero Scotland Projects Conference that “This partnership with road haulage, manufacturing, energy, government, union, and commercial finance sectors is absolutely key to accelerating the transition towards zero-emission trucks.

“Scotland’s economy – and society as a whole – rely on goods being moved with speed and efficiency, but these freight movements emit substantial greenhouse gases. We have worked collectively to understand and address the hurdles to transition.

Meanwhile, our Public Affairs & Policy Director, Martin Reid said that transport firms need more support to decarbonise. He told BBC Scotland that huge costs switching from diesel and lack of infrastructure are barriers. Clarity and incentivisation are key.

For more information click HERE.

Join the conversation online with #NetZeroForum. You can read more about how the RHA is decarbonising the future of commercial transport HERE.