Truck stop technology takes aim at pollution caused by engine idling
By: Stephanie Prokop
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIPThe air just got a little easier to breathe around the Petro truck stop off Route 206, due to new technology state officials say will allow truckers to turn off idling engines at this rest stop without losing heat or air conditioning.
The technology, developed by the Knoxville, Tenn.-based IdleAire company, is an external electric system that also enables truck drivers to maintain power for televisions and laptop computers instead of idling the tractor-trailer’s engines, which wastes fuel and produces noise and fumes.
The rest stop, located off Interstate 295 and the New Jersey Turnpike, is now home to 93 truck electrification bays.
The trucks pull under a dock and a large yellow tube extends down from the top of the bay to attach to the passenger-side window of the truck’s cab. Drivers pay to use the service and it is more economical to use the IdleAire than to keep their engines idling. According to the IdleAire Web site, the heating, cooling and ventilation units sit above each parking space.
The unit is connected to the Service Delivery Module by means of a flexible, reinforced, concentric hose, which also houses the delivery mechanisms for the communications and entertainment packages.
John Doty, a representative from the Tennessee headquarters of IdleAire, said that the truckers pay for the service by use of a card.
"They can swipe their fuel card through the card reader, and for truck drivers who have independent operators, they can use it like a credit card," he said.
Mr. Doty said that using IdleAire technology for truckers at rest stops is not only cheaper (at $1.85 an hour the service is significantly cheaper than idling away diesel fuel) but it also saves the truck driver in repairs and other maintenance issues.
"The more they idle their engines the shorter the life span of their engines," he added.
A demonstration of the new equipment took place Tuesday afternoon in the middle of the Petro Truck Stop, during a press conference held by the state Department of Transportation, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission.
According to a press release from the state agencies, the $905,750 project was financed by $600,000 in federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) improvement plan funds and $305,750 from the IdleAire company toward the installation of the anti-idling technology as part of the statewide diesel emissions reduction initiative.
The press release also stated that NJDOT managed construction of the project, which claims to provide truck drivers a cost-effective means to reduce harmful emissions from diesel idling.
Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Jackson said that she was pleased with the IdleAire initiative because it is a step forward in addressing health concerns in the area.
"Every day in New Jersey we have exhaust (from cars and trucks) that sometimes just makes the act of taking a breath difficult," she said.
"This initiative is not just from a fuel conservation perspective, but also from a health perspective," she added.
Idling engines not only give off harmful pollutants, but it is also against the law in New Jersey.
Ms. Jackson said that the anti-idling engine rule is going to be enforced in New Jersey, and that cars are subject to a ticket if drivers leave their cars running even while parked right outside a convenience store.
Other benefits could include fuel savings for truckers, and gasoline consumption could go down significantly, she said.
Ms. Jackson said in a previous statement that the new truck stop feature will provide an affordable alternative to idling, and is expected to reduce the amount of dangerous soot in the air we breathe by 20 tons per week.
This particular rest stop is the third in New Jersey, with the others located in Columbia and Paulsboro.
NJDOT Commissioner Kris Kolluri said that with this new technology at this particular rest stop, the IdleAire units will cut fuel consumption by 850,000 gallons of gasoline a year.
Charles Dougherty of the DVRPC remarked that now, "all of us in the region can breathe cleaner air."
A representative from IdleAire, John Knight, said that that IdleAire has facilities in 30 other states, and there are 7,610 units being used around the country.
He also stated that over the three days since the technology was turned on, 1,500 gallons of diesel fuel were saved at the Petro Truck Stop that would have otherwise been wasted by idling truck engines.

