New Jersey Grants $13M to Hydrogen Drayage Truck Port Pilot
New Jersey is paying $13 million to fund a near-term experiment testing the ability of hydrogen-powered drayage trucks to move cargo at the Port Newark Container Terminal. The funding is aimed at evaluating how hydrogen trucks perform in day-to-day port drayage work, where trucks run short routes, make frequent stops, and cycle in and out of terminals.
For drivers who work the New York/New Jersey port complex, drayage equipment changes can affect what trucks are available in the yard, how dispatch schedules are built, and what kinds of fueling and maintenance support are needed to keep trucks running. This pilot is positioned as a practical test of whether hydrogen power can handle real freight moves at a busy container terminal.
The announcement comes as costs are also moving higher for trucks traveling in the region. Four toll agencies will raise rates affecting the Turnpike, Parkway, Port Authority crossings and Delaware River bridges. Those toll changes can impact drayage and regional freight in a direct, immediate way, especially for runs that regularly use port crossings or connect New Jersey with Pennsylvania and New York.
Together, the hydrogen drayage pilot and the toll increases highlight two pressures drivers and fleets are dealing with at the same time: new technology being tested in working freight operations, and routine operating costs rising across key corridors.