Fossil fuel trucks pollute our environment with dangerous levels of greenhouse gas emissions. Trucks and buses account for only 6.5% of vehicles on the road, but produce 34.5% of greenhouse gas emissions from all vehicles. In 2017, heavy-duty vehicles accounted for almost 20%, 29,755 tons, of mobile NOx emissions in Pennsylvania (DEQ, 2021).

The EPA estimates that in 2020, the nationwide medium- and heavy-duty fleet consumed 55.3 billion gallons of fuel and emitted 561 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, 1.5 million metric tons of nitrogen oxides, and 38,000 metric tons of soot, or fine particulate matter. 

Adopting the ACT rule is vital for Pennsylvania to: 

• Meet its climate goals: According to a report by the International Council on Clean Transportation. 

• Be a leader in clean transportation. 

• Dramatically cut diesel emissions: NOx standards would be cut to about 75% below current standards beginning in 2024 and 90% below current standards in 2027. The ACT provides a minimum supply of zero-emission vehicles and data that future policies can use to target benefits to the communities most in need.

Read more about the rule here.