Tarmac has called for the gross vehicle weight (GVW) limit for electric concrete mixers to be increased to support the decarbonisation of transport in the sector.
It said a change in policy was required because payload capacity remained a significant hurdle in construction – especially given the added weight of batteries.
The electrification of fleet across site plant and delivery vehicles is seen as one of the key steps to reducing carbon emissions in the built environment.
Tarmac said its evidence showed that electric concrete mixers could reduce CO2 emissions by up to 42 tonnes annually per vehicle, compared with diesel mixers.
Under current regulations, the limit was increased by two tonnes for certain zero-emission vehicles; however, four-axle rigids were not included.
Ben Garner, Tarmac logistics director, is now calling for an urgent update in regulations to increase the GVW) limit for zero-emission vehicles.
The company launched its first all-electric mixer in 2022 and it continues to make progress on its strategy to decarbonise its entire fleet.
Garner said: “We’ve seen the immediate and measurable reductions in CO2, and we’ve repeatedly called for those across the industry to invest in electric vehicles and unlock collaborative carbon savings.
“However, gross vehicle weight is still a barrier to adoption across the industry, because it reduces the payload for vehicles fitted with a heavy lithium-ion battery.
“The legal maximum GVW for a four-axle rigid vehicle in the UK is 32-tonnes, but the battery alone in an electric HGV can weigh anything between two and four tonnes.”
Garner pointed out that battery energy density was improving, but electric mixers remained limited to urban deliveries where they could charge at depots or batching plants between runs.
For longer routes, or sites without high-power charging, the payload compromise was still a significant challenge.
He added: “If we want to encourage widespread adoption of decarbonised transport solutions in construction, we have to make allowances – either by increasing the limit, or allowing the introduction of 5-axle vehicles that are in common use across many European countries to support with weight distribution and encourage truck operators to make the switch to zero emission electric vehicles.”
