An innovative company called IdleAire is getting long-haul truckers to turn off their engines.

Every day nearly a half-million long-haul trucks ply US roads. The drivers are required by regulations to rest 10 hours for every 11 hours they drive, and while sleeping, they keep the cab comfortable by idling the engine. A class-8 long haul truck consumes roughly a gallon of diesel fuel per hour this way, releasing greenhouse gases and other pollutants into the atmosphere. Now, some drivers are shutting off thanks to IdleAire. In 2001, IdleAire launched a service that provides heating, cooling, Internet, television, telephone and other services through an in-window console powered by grid-produced electricity. 

Powering these services by electricity, rather than diesel fuel, reduces associated carbon dioxide emissions by 90 percent. This switch has avoided 115,544 metric tons of CO2eq that otherwise would have gone into the atmosphere and contributed to global warming. These reductions have been independently verified as true carbon offsets, and are available for purchase in the American Carbon Registry. 

Perhaps the best thing about IdleAire’s technology is that it doesn’t simply reduce carbon emissions; it also benefits truck drivers and improves the health of communities and the environment. Turning off a diesel engine stops the release of harmful air pollutants such as NOx, carbon monoxide, and organic compounds, and it reduces noise pollution, helping drivers sleep better and be more alert on the road.

Ken Carter at IdleAire has high hopes for the technology. “I believe this is just the beginning. Eventually, truckers will have no need to idle during extended rest periods; they’ll simply be powered by electricity during those times.”