Idling is Exhausting

Each year the trucking industry uses millions of gallons of diesel fuel hauling vital goods to stores across the country. The U.S. economy depends on it. But there are consequences to burning all that fuel. The carbon dioxide emissions lead to problems like global warming and increases in asthma and lung disease.

Burning fuel doesn’t happen only when truckers are transporting goods. Truck engines are left running when truckers are sleeping, loading and unloading freight, and stuck in traffic. Idling trucks burn a gallon of fuel each hour.

A lot of this idling happens after long stretches on the road. Federal law requires truck drivers to take a break after driving a certain number of hours. When they take breaks, most truckers idle their engine—sometimes for more than six hours—to use the heat, television and microwave in the truck’s cab, their “home away from home.”

Long engine idling costs the trucking industry more than $2.5 billion a year in fuel and engine repair, while releasing 11 million tons of carbon dioxide into the air. And it’s not that truckers get a good night’s sleep in their idling trucks. The National Transportation Safety Board estimates that 30 percent of truck accidents are caused by lack of sleep, which is hard to come by with the vibration, noise and fumes that come from an idling engine.

The trucking industry, states and the EPA agree that cutting back on unnecessary truck idling should be a priority. But it can be a hard balance to strike—making sure truckers are safe and rested while keeping a close eye on air quality. State lawmakers recognize the importance of this balance and have worked with state environmental agencies and the trucking industry to address the situation.

But trucking companies complain that interstate truckers have difficulty following the patchwork of state laws. Ten states, the District of Columbia and dozens of counties have anti-idling laws (30 states in total have some form of idling law at the state, county or local level).

Industry representatives say compliance with state anti-idling laws might increase with fewer variations. Driver DuWayne Marshall, from Watertown, Wis., says this is starting to happen. He finds state laws fairly easy to handle, as many of them are increasingly aligning.

In 2006, the EPA worked with states and industry to create a model idling law that addresses state and environmental concerns for reduced emissions and driver comfort and safety. The model is based on state and local laws and offers exemptions for circumstances out of the driver’s control, like traffic jams.

While the trucking industry views the EPA model law as a good step, others say a national law is the best way to solve the patchwork of state laws. Glen Kedzie with the American Trucking Association, however, worries that passage of a national idling law could potentially eliminate the grants for truckers to buy emission reduction technologies.

Idling Law for Pennsylvania?
More than 20,000 trucks travel through the small town of Carlisle, Penn., about 18 miles from Harrisburg, every day. Carlisle’s air quality is worse than that in 96 percent of all communities in the nation. The state is considering legislation that would restrict truck idling to no more than five minutes during any 60-minute period, except if the truck is in traffic, needs repairs, is loading or unloading, or temperatures dip below 40 degrees. The state’s trucking industry association supports the idea of idling reductions as long as the law doesn’t compromise driver safety.

“The trucking industry did not have an issue with a statewide anti-idling law,” says Representative Will Gabig, sponsor of the bill. “But it does have an issue with local ordinances that vary from place to place. With more than 2,000 municipalities in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the industry wants consistency across the state.”

Representative Gabig says Pennsylvania’s proposed law was written to be consistent with anti-idling ordinances and regulations in other states to ensure consistency from state to state.

Ron Ruman, with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, says that improved air quality isn’t the only benefit that can come from state idling restrictions. “The more fuel we conserve, the greater the benefit to our energy security as a nation.”

New Jersey Improves Compliance
New Jersey recently increased enforcement of an idling law that’s been around since the mid-1970s. A new public outreach campaign targets school buses, as well as convenience stores and distribution centers—where idling occurs most. The state’s environmental agency sent out fact sheets on vehicle idling’s harmful health effects on school children and the public.

Vehicle and property owners (at grocery stores, for example) are fined if found in violation of the law. Instead of paying the penalty, property owners can put up anti-idling signs—5,000 “Idling Stinks” signs are now in place across the state. The general public is the next target, with idling awareness signs going up on billboards, buses and at ballparks.

New Technologies Help
Truckers can use new devices to help meet anti-idling restrictions. Fuel or battery powered heating and air conditioning systems eliminate idling and allow drivers to rest comfortably. A direct fired heater costs about $1,000. Automatic engine shutdown/startup systems that turn on or off based on set periods cost between $900 and $1,200 and are available from engine manufacturers. The environmental agencies in New Jersey, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin offer grant money to help truck drivers and owners pay for these technologies. 

Some truck stops have electrified parking spaces where drivers actually plug in to access electricity, heat, air conditioning, Internet, satellite TV connections, on-demand movies and telephone services through adapters that fit in truck windows. Trucking companies can purchase these window adapters for $10 per truck. Using the adapter, the trucker can access all the creature comforts for $2.18 per hour with a fleet discount available. The fees escalate with amenities used. In Arkansas, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington, agency funding is available to help cover these costs, and the costs associated with setting up the spaces. 

IdleAire Technologies, Inc., the only company currently setting up the electrified parking spaces, has 130 sites in 34 states. IdleAire says it costs about $1.1 million to set up its system in a typical travel center, with an average 73-parking space installation. The cost per parking spot is approximately $10,000 to $15,000.

The EPA maintains a list of idle reduction technologies on its website. So far, there’s no move by any state to require these technologies, but the EPA does give credits for idle reduction projects in areas that don’t meet federal air quality standards.

Streamlining existing state laws could make a difference in compliance. The bottom line for all concerned is the need to maintain a safe and efficient transportation system while keeping the air clean and safe to breathe.