An environmental agency in Connecticut is pushing for electrical hookups at truck stops that could do away with idling for good. Unfortunately, the truckers could end up paying for it in the end.

The Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection has asked for a grant of $390,000 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to add in-truck electrification and shore power systems at truck stops along the Interstate 95 corridor, said Tracy Babbidge, assistant director of air planning for the department.

Babbidge said the grant application – which was in before the June 6 deadline – is still in its early phases of development.

“We have been looking at, simply put, trying to do a project to move forward with some type of truck stop electrification equipment,” Babbidge said. “We’re not very specific about it … until we know we’ve gotten (the grant). There really aren’t any specifics.”

However, Babbidge said the grant money would be used for the installation and setup of the electrical equipment. Under most of the plans reviewed by her organization, the money would go for the installation and offset any costs to the truck stop owners, but would not foot the bill for trucks using the system.

So far, no specific company for in-truck electrification has been chosen.

“We won’t know what the technology is until we go through a procurement process with a selection committee reviewing the proposals that come in, and go from there,” Babbidge said.

– By Aaron Ladage, staff writer
aaron_ladage@landlinemag.com