The Diesel Technology Forum (DTF) found that the number of new, near-zero emission diesel trucks jumped 10.2% between 2021 and 2022, now making up 57% of the commercial truck population.
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Near-zero emissions trucks are advanced diesel trucks manufactured after 2010, DTF says. Advanced diesel trucks are equipped with particulate filters and selective catalytic reduction systems that achieve near-zero levels of emissions.
"Nearly 7 million new technology diesel trucks are on the roads, delivering our goods and services with near-zero emissions," says Allen Schaeffer, executive director of DTF. "Nationwide, for every electric commercial truck on the road, there are nearly 1,100 powered by internal combustion engines."
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More than 95% of the Class 8 trucks made in 2010 and later model years are advanced diesel technology. Around 2% are compressed natural gas (CNG), less than 1% are electric and the rest are gasoline or other fuels. For the Class 3-8 truck population, which is more than 15 million vehicles, 75.6% are powered by diesel, 22.9% are powered by gasoline, 0.46% run on CNG, 0.85% run on some other fuel, and 0.09% are electric.
Schaeffer says according to the most recent analysis, internal combustion engines power 99.91% of the nation's trucking fleet, showing that even as the industry explores new fuel options, diesel will still play a dominant role.
