Jennie Abarca has been in the trucking business since she was a teenager—the daughter of a mechanic growing up around engines and oil. In 2012, she bought her first truck and founded King Fio Trucking in Long Beach, California. But it wasn’t until 2024, after she had become a parent, that she got her first electric vehicle.

In motherhood, she found a community of caretakers: moms looking out for each other, and each other’s children. It inspired Abarca to try to take better care of the planet so it could continue to take care of us. She grew up loving nature; she wanted her kids to be able to enjoy it, too, and the technology to help the environment was there.

“Why have this company if I’m just going to exacerbate this problem?” Abarca said. “So that’s when I really started thinking: ‘How can I be a trucker that’s doing this?’ And I promised myself I was never going to put another diesel on the road.”

King Fio Trucking is a member of the Electrifying Drayage Alliance (EDA), which unites global corporations around the goal of decarbonizing port drayage operations—the short-haul of goods between ports and nearby distribution centers, rail yards, and warehouses.  

The Climate Pledge and Smart Freight Centre co-founded the EDA in 2025, bringing companies like King Fio together to collaborate on solutions that can accelerate the transition to zero-exhaust-emission drayage by deploying electric trucks at major ports. Among them are the neighboring ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which see more than 40% of the freight that enters the United States.

This week, The Climate Pledge and Smart Freight Centre launched a new campaign to grow the EDA and accelerate the transition to zero-exhaust-emission logistics around the world. Just as ports are a gateway for heavy-duty freight, drayage is an entry point to help electrify the industry overall. Heavy-duty trucks make up only 7% of vehicles on U.S. roads but account for nearly 25% of transportation greenhouse gas emissions.

“Drayage is a special niche of trucking where you’re in and out of the ports, and you’re moving an ocean container usually within 50 to 60 miles,” Abarca said. “There’s a lot of idling time down at the port, so the electric truck is perfect.”

Electrifying drayage can avoid carbon emissions, help to improve air quality for port communities, and benefit businesses. Some drivers have told us they prefer electric trucks because they’re quieter and smoother to operate. And A.P. Moller - Maersk, a Climate Pledge signatory and member of the EDA, introduced EV “Clean Truck Express” lanes at its APM Terminals’ Pier 400 facility at the Port of Los Angeles to give electric drayage trucks priority access to terminal gates, helping improve operational efficiency.

Port drayage plays a critical role in global supply chains. Transforming it and eventually electrifying heavy-duty freight worldwide requires collaboration across the industry, from brands and logistics providers to charge point operators.  

Drayage trucks are well-suited for electric vehicle (EV) technology because they typically drive short, predictable routes and can support the necessary charging infrastructure.

The EDA is one of a series of collaborative joint action projects from The Climate Pledge aimed at tackling some of the planet’s biggest climate change challenges. The Pledge is a commitment to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, and more than 640 companies have signed on since Amazon and Global Optimism co-founded it in 2019.

Since EDA’s launch, more than 30 companies have joined the alliance, which is now supporting electrification efforts at key ports in North America, Europe, and Asia, expanding its operations in 2026 to Antwerp, Belgium; Shenzhen, China; and Chennai, India. Alliance members represent leading global brands, logistics providers, technology companies, and infrastructure developers. Crane Worldwide Logistics, LEGO, Nike, and Microsoft are among them. 

Kelsey "KJ" Jensen, head of climate product and programs at EDA member Flexport, said the company joined the alliance to connect and collaborate with other companies in the industry.

"Those who share our view that road electrification has to happen, sooner than later,” Jensen said. “With harder-to-abate industries like aviation utilizing the same feedstocks for alternative fuels like hydrotreated vegetable oil, being part of a focused network helps us to work together to develop the infrastructure, demand, and service the industry requires."

Another EDA member, Apex Logistics, is transitioning its drayage operations in California to electric vehicles.

“We view drayage as the foundation for electrifying the rest of our operations,” said Manoela Peixoto, the company’s corporate sustainability manager. “Starting with EV drayage allows us to extend electrification into areas like final delivery. We joined the Electrifying Drayage Alliance to collaborate with key stakeholders, including ports, carriers, and shippers, and work collectively to scale EV adoption across regions and operations.”

Arbaca likened the alliance to a “little family” helping work toward the electrification of drayage. Today, King Fio has 11 electric trucks.

“We’re going to get there; the tide is turning,” she said. “It’s nice to know that I’m not alone.”

Sign up for more information to join the Electrifying Drayage Alliance.