C40 Cities and The Climate Pledge Propose Framework for Zero Emission Trucking in India

The Climate Pledge and C40 Cities have released the National EV Highway Guidance Framework to transition India's road freight from diesel to battery electric trucks. The roadmap proposes a phased electrification of the busiest freight routes by 2027, starting with 20 priority highways identified by the Ministry of Heavy Industries. The plan aims to expand charging infrastructure to major industrial centres and ports to create a fully electric national freight network by 2035.

Road transport currently handles nearly 70 percent of goods movement across the country. While medium and heavy duty trucks constitute only 3 percent of vehicles on the road, they are responsible for approximately 53 percent of particulate emissions. With freight demand projected to increase over four times by 2050, the transition to zero exhaust emission trucks is positioned as a critical step to align with the national commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2070.

The framework is based on insights gathered from the Laneshift pilot project, which tested the operational and commercial viability of electric freight. The pilot included a 6,500 kilometre run along the Golden Quadrilateral and over 600 trips covering 200,000 kilometres on the Bengaluru to Chennai corridor. Data from the project indicated that electric trucks are commercially viable for daily operations exceeding 400 kilometres. The initiative also recorded a 4.2 times increase in electric truck orders from fleet operators signaling growing market confidence.

Representatives from C40 Cities stated that the pilot data demonstrates the commercial capability of zero emission trucks on long haul corridors, urging continued collaboration between government and industry stakeholders to scale deployment.