Class 7 truck
Old, fume-spewing diesel trucks are ferrying empty shipping containers back to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, skirting stringent clean-air emissions standards imposed in 2008.
The carriers have seized on a loophole in the program that closely regulates the common three-axle, so-called Class 8 tractors that carry up to 80,000 pounds – or a fully loaded shipping container – but failed to regulate smaller Class 7 two-axle tractors capable of hauling empty or lightly filled containers.
So, more truckers are using the old small trucks, but only to return empty containers. The practice saves the companies money, but port officials and environmentalists say it violates the spirit of the rules. It even angers competitors who have spent millions upgrading fleets.
On Dec. 16, the California Air Resources Board will consider a staff recommendation that state emission standards be amended to include Class 7 trucks.