XTRA Lease on Tuesday, Jan. 25, announced that it has ordered 6,000 new fuel-efficient trailers equipped with aerodynamic side skirts and low rolling- resistance tires, providing fleets access to new equipment and opportunities to lower their fuel costs. XTRA Lease will add both features on new trailers, 53-foot and longer, due to arrive at company rental locations throughout the United States between February and August.
According to the company, not only will the new trailers provide added fuel efficiencies, they’ll comply with California’s greenhouse gas regulations and are safe to enter and operate in that state without penalty. XTRA Lease says the new order maintains the company’s practice of providing carriers and shippers an ample availability of new equipment options.
“We’re continuing to invest in the industry,” says Bill Franz, XTRA Lease chief executive officer and president. “As we did last year, we’re ordering new equipment again to meet our customers’ critical need to have the right trailers at the right time. Access to new, quality equipment is significant for fleets unable to invest or acquire the capital needed to obtain new trailers, particularly coming out of the economic cycle we’ve been in and continue to endure. As capacity tightens, we’re focused on having a fleet size, mix and model-year make-up that evolves, stays fresh and provides fleets with good, versatile cost-saving options.”
New to XTRA Lease this year will be trailers equipped with aerodynamic side skirts and low rolling resistance tires, with installations planned for both vans and reefers. Included in the order will be approximately 40 57-foot trailers equipped with side skirts and low-rolling resistance tires. The company also is adding several 48-foot vans – some equipped with liftgates – and 48-foot reefers to the fleet; those models won’t have side skirts.
The California Air Resource Board now requires 2011 model-year and newer 53-foot trailers operating in the Golden State to comply with the state’s Heavy-Duty Vehicle Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Regulation. This measure mandates that heavy-duty tractors and 53-foot trailers in California meet certain efficiency criteria developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency SmartWay Partnership Program; in particular, the program directs the use of aerodynamic trailer side skirts and low rolling-resistance tires.
XTRA Lease says the new trailers can travel California’s highways without penalty, as they comply with SmartWay and the state’s GHG regulations. The new trailers will be distributed throughout the company’s U.S. locations.
