The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) is thrilled to announce the inaugural incentive program for zero emission (ZE) truck and charging deployment in our gateway. After a competitive bid process, the NWSA identified Zeem Solutions (Zeem) as the awarded subrecipient. Zeem has a proven track record in deployment of ZEVs and charging infrastructure, but this will be their first deployment in Washington state.

“We are grateful for the partner we have found in Zeem. This transition is a necessary but expensive one, and we need all the partners at the table that we can get. Funding from the Washington State Legislature and their recognition of the importance of decarbonizing ports was key to making this happen and continued investment and partnership will be crucial to future iterations of this program.” said NWSA Co-Chair and Port of Tacoma Commission President John McCarthy. “The absolute scale of the transition for trucks and ports to a zero-emission future is a journey no one entity can do on their own.”

Made possible by a 6.2 million dollar grant from WSDOT, the incentives will collectively bring 19 zero emission trucks and charging to the Puget Sound region. This grant serves as a catalyst for private investment from project participants, with Zeem and its fleet partners contributing a substantial portion of the total project costs. The Zeem project also includes building out a charging site that will enable 250 vehicles to charge per day, with parking capacity for 70 vehicles overnight. The charging site will be located near the new I-5 exit ramp just south of SeaTac Airport, along SR-99 (International Blvd / Pacific Hwy), convenient for nearby warehouse and distribution centers that see a large volume of truck deliveries. In addition to serving trucks, the Zeem site will serve other fleets operating light-, medium- and heavy-duty electric commercial vehicles. The charging site will break ground in the Fall of 2025, with the ZEVs expected on the road by 2026. This program was made possible by Climate Commitment Act funding, Washington’s cap-and-invest program supporting climate, jobs and public health.

“WSDOT is pleased to be part of advancing the use of clean energy for zero emission drayage trucks,” said Jason Biggs, Director of WSDOT’s Rail, Freight and Ports Division. “Projects like this one are key to meeting the state’s climate commitment goals and the Northwest Seaport Alliance is a valuable partner in this mission.”

“We are thankful to the Northwest Seaport Alliance for helping the region adopt electric trucks, and we invite truck operators to experience how well they are matched to the job of hauling drayage,” said Paul Gioupis, CEO of Zeem Solutions. “We have served truck fleets for several years, and our goal is to make it a compelling business decision for fleets, that is both economically and environmentally sustainable.”

This launch of the incentive program and inaugural award follows closely on the heels of the release of the Decarbonizing Drayage Roadmap (the Roadmap). The Roadmap, which was released earlier this year, outlines almost 70 recommendations for getting the full drayage fleet into ZEVs by 2050 or sooner. It was the product of the Puget Sound Zero Emission Truck Collaborative (the Collaborative), which brings together industry, community, government, and experts to chart a just and equitable transition to ZE drayage. This incentive program was designed in tangent with the Roadmap, and utilized the lessons learned and feedback received from the driver community through that process. These incentives were also designed to alleviate cost burden and risk to drivers, and to ensure the co-development of the necessary charging infrastructure. Zeem is partnering with local drayage providers to ensure that ZE trucks are deployed equitably with minimal impacts to the driver community who are integral to port operations. The Collaborative will continue to support the implementation of the Roadmap, incorporating any best practices learned from this initial deployment.

“The Collaborative process, and the Roadmap that was its result, have been and will continue to be instrumental in ensuring this transition is successful as it evolves. The partnership and analysis undertook as a result of that work are critical building blocks to achieving scale for this market, while continuing to be uplifting and inclusive of our existing drayage community” said Dennis McClerran, former EPA Regional Administrator and part of the consulting team that facilitated the Collaborative's work.

Drayage trucks, heavy duty class 8 trucks that mainly work short haul routes from our ports to warehouses, rail, or transloading facilities, frequently travel back and forth along our local roadways, meaning they have a high impact on our air. Diesel emissions from heavy duty trucks contribute to both diesel particulate matter and GHG emissions, affecting both the quality of the air we breathe and our impact on global warming and the associated climate impacts. Truck emissions represent about 6% of all seaport-related diesel pollution and about 30% of all seaport-related climate pollution in the region, emissions that disproportionately impact communities living near port operations and along freight corridors.

“This is a major milestone, putting the first zero emission drayage trucks on the road in Washington State. We continue to make clear and steady progress, from our overarching strategy with the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy to the Decarbonizing Drayage Roadmap, to the first ZE Class 8 deployment, monumental progress is always the collective outcome of many small steps” said NWSA Managing Member and Port of Seattle Commissioner Sam Cho. “I am so grateful to the staff and partners that work every day to make these milestones a reality.”

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About The Northwest Seaport Alliance 

The Northwest Seaport Alliance is a marine cargo operating partnership of the ports of Seattle and Tacoma.  Combined, the North and South harbors are a major North American gateway for containerized trade and the handling of non-containerized commodities (bulk, breakbulk, project/heavy-lift cargoes, and automobiles). 

About Zeem Solutions

Zeem Solutions offers charging, parking, fleet management services, and electric vehicle leases that enable commercial fleets to transition to the zero-emission future easily and affordably. We build and operate zero-emission vehicle depots and customer-located charging facilities for commercial fleets throughout the country near ports, airports, and warehousing & distribution centers. With Zeem, fleets of all sizes can choose the exact class and configuration of vehicle they need and drive it under an all-in lease that includes supervised overnight charging, regular maintenance and cleaning, secure parking, and 24/7/365 operations at conveniently located mobility hubs. Zeem is deploying depots in strategic locations to accelerate fleet electrification and zero-emission mobility, serve as centers of technological innovation, and support the growing clean energy economy. www.zeemsolutions.com