Just a bit ago, WattEV ordered 370 Tesla semi trucks, which is quite a large order for electric heavy-duty cargo trucks in the US. The Tesla Semi has been in development for years, including various pilot operations for real companies. Now comes news of a California state program to provide rebates to retailers that buy fully electric medium- and heavy-duty electric trucks. The name of the program is the California Clean Fuel Reward, which is a point-of-sale financial incentive. These are the incentive amounts: Class 2b*: $7,500 Class 3: $15,000 Class 4: $15,000 Class 5: $60,000 Class 6: $85,000 Class 7: $85,000 Class 8: $120,000 They are only for battery-electric vehicles — as in, no hybrids and no hydrogen vehicles. The rebates are also only for new battery-electric vehicles for purchase or lease, and the vehicles are to be used commercially. California Clean Fuel Reward incentives can be combined with some others as well. “As the largest utility-led incentive program of its kind for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, the California Clean Fuel Reward represents a historic step forward in fleet electrification. By lowering upfront costs, it helps accelerate access to innovative vehicle technologies and supports long-term market transformation,” said Southern California Edison Senior Vice President and Chief Customer Officer Funmi Williamson. Large and medium-sized commercial trucks generate tremendous amounts of toxic air pollution that makes many people sick and contributes to premature human deaths. “While California has made great progress in cleaning the air, nearly 18 million residents breathe unhealthy air that exceeds safe standards and 1,500 die from air pollution every year in Southern California alone.” To use just one example, asthma episodes have been linked to exposure to toxic air pollution. “In the U.S., an expert panel estimated that 30% of asthma exacerbations among children were related to the environment, costing the country $2.0 billion on an annual basis. Likewise in California, we estimated that 30% (20–41%) of asthma was attributable to the environment, with associated costs of $200 million per year.” Unfortunately, gas and diesel vehicles also generate huge amounts of greenhouse gases, thus directly contributing to climate change. Replacing gas and diesel fleet trucks helps reduce toxic air pollutants and climate change emissions at the same time. It should be noted that the most corrupt politicians in Washington, DC, and various lobbyists cannot stop the electrification of transportation, though they may try strenuously to do so. They also have failed to stop the spread of solar power, wind power, geothermal power, and hydropower, which all produce clean, renewable electricity — and this electricity can be used to charge electric vehicles of all kinds.
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