The seventh annual State of Sustainable Fleets report arrived this week with a clear finding: fleets spreading their bets across multiple fuel types are proving more resilient than those waiting on a single clean technology.
Federal policy reversals reshaped the zero-emission truck market heading into 2026. The rollback of greenhouse gas vehicle standards, the expiration of commercial zero-emission vehicle tax credits worth up to $40,000 per medium- and heavy-duty unit, and the nullification of California's clean truck regulations left fleet managers uncertain about long-term procurement. More than $5 billion in state, local, and utility funding for clean projects continues to flow annually through 2028.
Natural gas is gaining share. The Cummins X15N 15-liter engine finished its first full commercial year with 71% of operating fleets reporting savings versus diesel. Battery-electric medium-duty vehicles also delivered lower operating costs than the vehicles they replaced, with class-wide registrations up 21% in 2025. Propane use grew as well, with more than 23,000 school buses now serving 1,100 districts in 49 states at prices 47% to 63% below gasoline.
Hydrogen remains a costly outlier at $18.86 per kilogram after incentives -- an 89% to 135% premium over diesel. Industry analysts say the fuel must reach $8 to $10 per kilogram to break even with diesel.
AI adoption among fleet managers reached 48%, with route planning, dispatching, and preventive maintenance diagnostics as the top use cases. Autonomous trucking pilots are advancing: Volvo's VNL Autonomous paired with the Aurora Driver is hauling freight for DHL and Uber Freight in Texas. Fleets building on these gains with structured driver training programs can find support for fleet management video training at relyoncontent.com.
Source: FreightWaves -- https://www.freightwaves.com/news/state-of-sustainable-fleets-2026