The transition to zero-emission heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) presents both opportunities and challenges for the UK’s freight sector. Sharing charging and refuelling infrastructure has the potential to lower costs, increase resilience, and accelerate adoption. The UK Government’s flagship Zero-Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator (ZEHID) programme, supported by £200 million in investment, is exploring these issues to build the backbone of a nationwide network. While progress has been made in decarbonising passenger cars and light logistics vehicles, eliminating fossil fuels from heavy freight remains a significant hurdle.
Heavy vehicles operate under different patterns than private cars, spending more time on the road and requiring reliable depot-based charging and refuelling solutions. Achieving rapid decarbonisation will require widespread deployment of both electrical and hydrogen infrastructure, alongside coordinated grid upgrades. However, operators face key obstacles, including high upfront costs for vehicles and chargers, lengthy grid connection delays, operational disruptions, and space constraints at busy depots.
Despite these barriers, sharing infrastructure offers major advantages. By opening up chargers to other fleets, companies can lower capital investment, maximise utilisation, and achieve stronger returns on infrastructure. Shared facilities extend operational range, provide resilience in the event of outages, and offer smaller operators access to infrastructure they could not afford to build alone. For drivers, shared depots can also provide critical rest and refresh facilities, ensuring better working conditions.
However, challenges remain in turning this collaborative model into reality. Uncertainty over charger availability, liability concerns, site access restrictions, and issues around sharing driver facilities are among the practical difficulties operators face. Nevertheless, ZEHID participants are trialling solutions, including live booking platforms, standardised agreements, and innovative site designs that balance access with operational security.
Beyond depot-level sharing, coordinated approaches at the grid level also hold promise. Neighbouring depots could align with Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) to plan joint connections, reducing costs and delays. Time-managed power sharing and third-party infrastructure operators offer further pathways to accelerate deployment while spreading risk.
As the UK pushes forward with its decarbonisation commitments, collaboration between government, industry, and technology providers will be essential. Shared charging and refuelling infrastructure may not be a one-size-fits-all solution, but it represents a crucial step toward enabling freight operators of all sizes to transition confidently to zero-emission HGVs.
