NSW is to give access to the state’s road network to zero emission trucks which weigh more than internal combustion engine trucks because of their heavier batteries.
The change has been introduced for a trial period of two years as part of a new state policy, which aims to reduce the carbon footprint created by heavy road vehicles and rail freight.
Last week, the federal government made the landmark decision to increase the width limit for trucks fitted with a number of safety features from 2.5m to 2.55m.
Many electric vehicles built overseas, such as in the EU and the US, are just a few centimetres too wide for the previous Australian limit of 2.5m.
The Electric Vehicle Council (EVC) has welcomed both the width and weight limit increases as wins for the electric vehicle market, as they say it will encourage more drivers and companies to switch to zero emission trucks.
The EVC is also hoping that other states will follow NSW in increasing their weight limits for electric vehicles.
EVC chief executive Behyad Jafari said: “More great news to share for electric heavy vehicles, this time out of NSW who have released their Net Zero Emissions Freight Policy.
“It includes an important, hard fought for step of concessions on mass limits for heavy EVs on state roads.
“While all governments will work together on studying and determining mass limit changes, this process can take years and given everyone agrees this is a change that needs to happen, there’s no reason to wait.
“With a similar step taken in SA, we need other states and the Federal Government to follow step quickly so we can get more zero emissions trucks on our roads asap.”
The NSW trial will allow zero emission vehicles with up to 8 tonne on a single steer axle and up to 18.5 tonnes on the drive axle, where the overall gross vehicle mass (GVM) of the truck is not greater than 26 tonnes.