The movement of goods by trucks plays a vital role in supporting India’s economic growth. With increasing industrial activities, rapid urbanization, and the growth of e-commerce, the demand for trucking is expected to grow fourfold by 2050 compared to today. This rising demand must be met with cleaner trucks that do not produce tailpipe emissions, known as zero-emission trucks (ZETs). These ZETs offer many benefits such as lowering logistics costs, improving energy security, enhancing air quality, reducing harmful emissions, and helping India achieve its goal of net-zero emissions.
India has already started efforts to promote the use of ZETs. The central government has set aside ₹500 crore for purchasing ZETs under the Prime Minister Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) scheme. To make this scheme successful, both the public and private sectors need to take several actions to encourage demand for ZETs. One important strategy is to identify and develop ZET corridors, which are highway routes equipped with charging or refueling facilities to support the smooth movement of goods using zero-emission trucks.
These ZET corridors help make good use of trucks and infrastructure, show that ZETs can be both practical and cost-effective, reduce risks and costs, and attract private investment for such projects. Public and private groups in India have already started working on creating these corridors. In 2023, the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India released a Technical Roadmap that focused on ZET corridors as a key way to support the transition to zero-emission trucking. Another PSA report showed the technical and economic benefits of ZETs on the Delhi-Jaipur corridor. Pilot projects to develop ZET corridors are also underway in states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka.
Building on these efforts, the PSA Office took the initiative to identify the most suitable corridors for ZET deployment in India. The process was divided into three phases. The first phase involved assessing and shortlisting the top 50 corridors based on data like traffic volume and goods movement patterns. Initially, 230 corridors were considered, then consolidated to 103. Toll transaction data and satellite imagery helped prioritize these corridors. Qualitative assessments, including interviews and analysis of future freight demand and industrial activity, further narrowed the list to 50.
In the second phase, the PSA Office and RMI held an industry roundtable in New Delhi in June 2024 to gather input from stakeholders and reduce the list to 20-30 corridors. Important criteria discussed included truck traffic demand, suitable use cases, availability of ZET models and infrastructure, access to land, supportive policies, and economic viability. Using these criteria, 24 corridors were shortlisted.
The final phase involved detailed field research and data analysis to select the top 10 corridors. This included surveys of truck drivers and fleet operators to understand traffic patterns and awareness of ZETs, as well as mapping key facilities that support ZET infrastructure, like power lines and logistics hubs. Public and industry interest was also considered. Scores were calculated based on these factors and verified through expert consultations and tests to ensure reliability.
Half of the top 10 corridors are in Southern India, where there are more ZET-ready applications, frequent round trips, high traffic, and growing industries. These corridors are considered strong candidates for ZET deployment because of their good geographic and economic conditions.
Identifying priority ZET corridors is the first important step toward developing routes that support zero-emission trucking across India. These corridors can provide valuable lessons and pave the way for the larger-scale adoption of ZETs on major highways like the Golden Quadrilateral. The next steps will involve creating pilot projects and business plans for these corridors to prove their financial and operational success. The top 10 corridors identified offer a promising opportunity for India to lead in clean transportation and promote sustainable growth in the trucking sector.
