Alt Fuel Discussion Gets Real at NTEA’s Work Truck Week

In March, NTEA’s Work Truck Week, the industry’s premier commercial work truck event, wrapped up an action-packed few days in Indianapolis with nearly 15,000 visitors.

As a long-time attendee and former board chair for the NTEA, one thing I found refreshing was the shift in conversation about what’s actually needed to make a positive environmental impact both right now and for the long haul.

Electric vehicles anchored nearly every discussion in prior years, with previous conference sessions positioning electric vehicles as the only clean solution. The sentiment in 2022 was that if businesses aren’t solely adopting EV, they’ll quickly fall behind.

This year, my colleagues and I enjoyed broader, more realistic discussions about what alternative fuels actually work in application and are available for fleets today. In fact, there were several conversations about how EVs work in specific markets and duty cycles compared to other alternatives like propane autogas. Electric vehicles were under much tighter scrutiny from attendees as we collectively look at options on the road ahead toward a greener future.

With all the unanswered questions around EV range, infrastructure, price point and availability, fleet managers are looking for viable clean fuel options for the immediate future. Propane vehicles run on a clean, affordable, domestic, scalable and readily available resource helping businesses meet their goals and reduce emissions from day one.

It’s great to see that the industry is looking for many solutions and not all the proverbial eggs are going into the EV basket. The path to near zero emissions involves multiple strategies, partners and solutions that work for fleets of all shapes, sizes and budgets. One size rarely ever fits all.

Here’s to more great conversations and collaboration.

Todd Mouw is executive vice president of sales and marketing of ROUSH CleanTech, an industry leader of advanced clean vehicle technology. Mouw has more than two decades of experience in the automotive and high-tech industries. As former president of the NTEA Green Truck Association, Mouw helped set standards in the green trucking industry. To learn more, visit ROUSHcleantech.com.