This study compares the cost effectiveness and the potential for trucking emission reduction from goods movement strategies in Southern California. The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will have to accommodate the substantial traffic growth in the next decades due to the growth in the trade along the Asian Pacific corridor. Not only will the state have to improve capacity and avoid gridlock, but it will also have to develop strategies that reduce emissions from goods movement. The Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) and other agencies are developing major plans for goods movement infrastructure investments, technological, and operational strategies that account for environmental performance. Besides the planned improvements in trucking emissions due to new emission standards, additional trucking strategies are also evaluated in this analysis. They include truck replacement, truck repowering, truck retrofit with particulate matter control devices, as well as two operational strategies: a virtual container yard, and an expanded incident management program that tackles incidents involving heavy-duty diesel trucks. These strategies are compared in terms of cost effectiveness and emission reduction potential.
Abstract