Toyota Motor North America has announced that its Project Portal Class 8 hydrogen fuel cell truck has completed initial testing and development and will begin regular drayage routes at ports in Southern California starting in late October.

Project Portal has already completed more than 4,000 successful miles of testing while pulling drayage-rated cargo and will begin moving goods from select Port of Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals to surrounding rail yards and warehouses for distribution on Oct. 23. Project Portal was originally announced in April of this year as a proof of concept  to determine the feasibility of fuel cell technology for heavy-duty trucks in drayage operations.

With initial testing complete, the truck will log around 200 miles worth of daily trips from the twin ports. The localized, frequent route patterns are designed to test the drayage duty-cycle capabilities from the fuel cell system while capturing real-world performance data. As the study progresses, Toyota will introduce the truck to longer-haul routes.

The initial feasibility study operations will be managed by the TMNA Project Portal team in collaboration with Toyota’s Service Parts Accessories Operations group and its drayage provider, Southern Counties Express.

“Toyota has led the way in expanding the understanding and adoption of fuel cell technology,” said Bob Carter, TMNA executive vice president. “From the introduction of the Mirai passenger vehicle to the creation of the heavy-duty fuel cell system in Project Portal, Toyota continues to demonstrate the versatility and scalability of the zero-emission fuel cell powertrain.”

Project Portal is a fully functioning heavy-duty truck concept that generates more than 670 horsepower and 1,325 lb.-ft. of torque from two Mirai fuel cell stacks and a 12kWh battery - a relatively small battery to support Class 8 load operations. The concept’s gross combined weight capacity is 80,000 pounds and its estimated driving range is more than 200 miles per fill, under normal drayage operation.