A recent paper from Carnegie Mellon University didn’t get much attention, but it tackles a huge topic: the challenge of cutting carbon emissions from the energy-hungry trucking sector…

The big picture: Several strategies in concert are needed to cut carbon from heavy trucking — greater efficiency, electrification, lower-CO2 fuels, changes in supply chain management and more, the paper finds.

“You need to push on all the levers,” co-author Parth Vaishnav says.

Lead author Lynn Kaack similarly emphasizes making trucking cleaner and moving freight off the roads. “You definitely need both for deeper decarbonization,” she tells Axios.

Where it stands: It’s a tough problem, and the paper points to a couple reasons why: current battery technology and economics aren’t well-suited to long-haul routes and very low-carbon liquid fuel replacements for diesel aren’t yet mature.
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