Munich, Germany- Traton Group., a commercial vehicle manufacturer and its brand Volkswagen Truck & Bus, together with a broad coalition of logistics operators, infrastructure providers, and the Brazilian government, unveiled the Laneshift e-Dutra project a private-sector alliances aimed at decarbonizing freight transport in Brazil.
Centered on the busy route between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, the e-Dutra corridor is Brazil’s first dedicated zero-emissions freight corridor and forms part of the Global Green Road Corridors initiative. The project is designed to significantly cut emissions from heavy-duty transport on one of the country’s most important logistics axes and to serve as a model for international climate cooperation.
TRATON’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Andreas Follér, emphasized that while full electrification of transport will take time, e-Dutra demonstrates tangible progress rather than distant promises and shows how transformation can happen when multiple actors coordinate their efforts.
By pooling demand for electric freight and coordinating investment decisions, the initiative aims to lower the financial risks associated with large-scale charging infrastructure and speed up the rollout of zero-emission trucks across the corridor.
Volkswagen Truck & Bus President and CEO Roberto Cortes underlined that the company joined the coalition as an initiator to help build more sustainable transport solutions for all, noting that collaboration with diverse partners is key to creating smarter mobility for future generations.
The project is already moving from concept to reality. Together with LOTS Group, Volkswagen Truck & Bus has completed the first electric truck journey along the route using the existing infrastructure. DHL Supply Chain, Amazon, and Scania have also started running electric freight operations in the corridor. These early deployments are being used to map charging needs, refine operational models, and optimize vehicle performance in preparation for a broader scale-up of zero-emission freight.