Idling trucks are an issue for trucking companies for three important reasons. First, when a truck is running, but not moving down the road, the company isn't making any money. Secondly, idling trucks consume fuel, thus adding to the company's expenses. And finally, these non-productive vehicles are responsible for a great deal of carbon emissions. New heavy duty and semi-truck technology help solve these issues and help trucking companies comply with new regulations recently enacted.
Idle Shut Down
In some states, such as California, the amount of time that a truck can sit and idle is limited to just a few minutes. Drivers literally have five minutes or less to shut down their engines, or face stiff fines that can range anywhere from $300 for the first offense up to a whopping $10,000 for repeated offenses. Some trucking companies have installed shutdown devices in their trucks to avoid this issue. The device is triggered by the air temperature outside of the truck and prevents it from idling for more than a set amount of consecutive minutes if the outside temperature falls between a specific range. These devices can be overridden when the driver's safety and comfort are at risk.
Auxiliary Power Units
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While they're important to drivers who spend long periods of time on the road, they contribute greatly to the carbon emissions problem. The EPA encourages the use of other forms of idle-reduction technologies, such as including battery powered electric APUs. Alternatives such as IdleAir and Shore Power offer truckers the opportunity to plug in their unit when at rest, thus avoiding idle time. However, these services are few and far between and their use is limited to specific geographic areas, for