Analyzing the Effectiveness of Policy and Regulatory Frameworks for Sustainable Truck Freight

This study systematically reviews the policy landscape for sustainable freight transportation using text mining and natural language processing techniques and aggregates them into seven distinct policy types: prohibitions, rebates, sales mandates, technological mandates, material infrastructure, and immaterial infrastructure. Real world and as-of-yet unimplemented policies across the identified categories of sustainable transportation policy that are especially relevant to the cost and operational dynamics of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid commercial vehicles are evaluated to assess their observed or anticipated impact on the socioeconomic environment including equity and environmental justice impacts. The effects of each evaluated policy are then modeled from the perspective of a freight business owner by leveraging the NCST Total Cost of Ownership Spreadsheet Tool (TCOST) to evaluate the direct and indirect cost effects of the policy and in the process determine if and how the policy would alter fleet management decisions and business behavior. The human, environmental, and economic implications of evaluated policies are considered and the efficacy of each policy type is determined, culminating in actionable policy recommendations.

• Record URL:
  https://ncst.ucdavis.edu/project/analyzing-effectiveness-policy-and-regulatory-frameworks-sustainable-truck-freight

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $77002
• Contract Numbers:

  DOT 69A3552348319

  DOT 69A3552344814

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

  University Transportation Centers Program
  Department of Transportation
  Washington, DC  United States  20590

  National Center for Sustainable Transportation

  University of California, Davis
  Davis, CA  United States 

  Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

  School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  790 Atlantic Drive
  Atlanta, GA  United States  30332-0355
• Managing Organizations:

  National Center for Sustainable Transportation

  University of California, Davis
  Davis, CA  United States 

  University of California, Davis

  1 Shields Ave
  Davis, California  United States  95616

  Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

  School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  790 Atlantic Drive
  Atlanta, GA  United States  30332-0355
• Project Managers:

  Iacobucci, Lauren

• Performing Organizations:

  National Center for Sustainable Transportation

  University of California, Davis
  Davis, CA  United States 

  Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta

  School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  790 Atlantic Drive
  Atlanta, GA  United States  30332-0355
• Principal Investigators:

  Weed, Caleb

  Rodgers, Michael

• Start Date: 20230815
• Expected Completion Date: 20231231
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• USDOT Program: University Transportation Centers

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Artificial intelligence; Commercial vehicles; Costs; Economic impacts; Electric vehicles; Environmental impacts; Fleet management; Freight and passenger services; Plug-in hybrid vehicles; Policy analysis; Regulation; Sustainable transportation; Trucking
• Subject Areas: Economics; Energy; Environment; Finance; Freight Transportation; Motor Carriers; Policy; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01900216
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: National Center for Sustainable Transportation
• Contract Numbers: DOT 69A3552348319, DOT 69A3552344814
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Nov 20 2023 4:58PM