Date: 12-Nov-09
Country: US
Author: Basil Katz
 

NEW YORK - U.S. truck operators are under pressure to improve energy efficiency as rail companies tout their green credentials and bid to win more freight haulage.

The American Trucking Association says trucks transport about 70 percent, or 10 billion tons of all U.S. freight annually. But they use at least three times as much energy as trains per ton carried, analysts say.

The recession cut the amount of freight hauled around the country more than 10 percent compared to last year, says the American Trucking Association. But that was a temporary blip.

"As we expect a tremendous increase in freight volume in the coming years, we believe there are significant economic, environment and efficiency benefits in moving as much of it as possible on rail," said Robert Sullivan, of CSX, the third-largest U.S. railroad by revenue.

The 2.2 million registered semi-trucks, which account for most U.S. heavy long-haul transportation, averaged 5.1 miles per gallon (8.2 km per 3.8 litres) in 2007, said the Center for Transportation Analysis at Oakbridge National Laboratory.

Rail companies, which would like to become a green alternative to trucking as the economic recovery gathers steam, were boosted when Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) (BRKb.N) recently agreed to spend $26 billion to buy railroad operator Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp (BNI.N).

The deal was interpreted as the legendary investor making a "green bet" on trains based partly on the view that railroads are more efficient than trucks when energy prices are high.

Congress is considering bills that would extend a 25 percent tax credit to all new freight rail expansion.

On the other side of the ledger, the Rocky Mountain Institute, a nonprofit environmental group based in Colorado, has created the National Council for Freight Efficiency to help the freight trucking industry become more environmentally efficient. But some truckers don't want to hear the message.

DON'T WANT TO HEAR

"As soon as you say green, (truck operators) shut down," said Hiroko Kawai, who heads the institute's trucking transformation and business development efforts.

One way railroads are attracting freight away from highways is double stacking, where one container can be stacked on top of another, doubling efficiency, said CSX's Sullivan.

But truckers say railways lack the national infrastructure necessary to pose a real threat to their business.

"If they tried to shift freight to rail, the railroad system would come to a grinding halt." said Clayton Boyce, a spokesman for the American Trucking Association.

"We've been cutting our fuel consumption long before the rail roads started their green ad campaign," he said.

Truck manufacturers and operators are under government pressure to raise efficiency through voluntary programs like the Environmental Protection Agency's SmartWay initiative.

The program certifies trucks that have been outfitted with equipment to reduce fuel use and emissions.

In California, older trucks entering large ports and rail yards must be gradually replaced by more efficient models. Drivers who let the motor of their trucks run while at a standstill are fined.

The Rocky Mountain Institute says the fragmented trucking industry makes achieving progress complicated.

In a recent study, it highlighted common ways that truckers waste energy, from returning empty after deliveries to keeping the engine running all night while parked to stay warm.

(Editing by Alan Elsner and Michelle Nichols)