PHOENIX — Knight-Swift Transportation Holdings Inc. has set a goal to cut its carbon emissions in half by the year 2035, the company announced Sept. 29.
“Sustainability has always been at the core of our culture,” said Dave Jackson, CEO of Knight-Swift.
“While we have made significant strides in improving our environmental footprint over the years, we believe that setting an ambitious public goal to reduce carbon emissions generated by our fleet by 50% over the next 15 years quantifies our commitment,” he stated. “Our passionate and dedicated team members have the knowledge to rally around and execute on this achievable goal that will benefit our families, our communities, and future generations.”
Knight-Swift anticipates meeting this goal through various initiatives, including:
- Implementing next-generation tractor and trailer aerodynamic solutions;
- Continuing deployment of advanced idle-reduction technologies;
- Utilizing next-generation clean diesel engines;
- Operating zero-emissions vehicles, including battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell technology; and
- Executing various other strategies as technology is developed and introduced to the market.
“This is really a process rather than an event,” explained Dave Williams, the company’s senior vice president of equipment and government relations.
“Like every other challenge that we have faced in our history, we will approach this very methodically, with very high expectations,” he continued. “While we will likely have to take some risk, we believe that being environmentally responsible and being profitable are not mutually exclusive. We expect these technologies to reduce emissions and to be cost-effective.”
To formally kick off this initiative, Knight-Swift has teamed with Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) to deploy the carrier’s first zero-emissions battery-electric vehicle, consisting of a pre-production Freightliner eCascadia day-cab tractor as part of DTNA’s Freightliner Customer Experience Fleet. This Freightliner eCascadia, equipped with a fully electric drivetrain, will be used by Knight-Swift to service the Greater Los Angeles area with the benefit of zero tailpipe emissions.
DTNA’s Freightliner Customer Experience Fleet is an ongoing initiative to engage customers in the development of commercial electric vehicles by deploying electric trucks in real-world applications.
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