Truck charging infrastructure 2026: e-HGVs, AFIR and tolls live
Electric-HGV registrations, public truck charging infrastructure and the cargo-bike market live. Below the charts: where the motorway build-out stands, what AFIR requires by 2030 and what tolls and depreciation mean for your fleet. Sources: EAFO, ZIV.
Electric HGVs DE (N2/N3)
Source: EAFO
BEV share of HGVs DE
Source: EAFO
HDV charging stations EU
Source: EAFO
E-cargo bikes DE
Source: ZIV
Electric-HGV new registrations DE (N2/N3)
Alternative powertrains by type. Source: EAFO
BEV HGVs: Germany vs. EU27
BEV new registrations (N2/N3). Source: EAFO
Alternative drivetrain share DE (N2/N3)
Market share of BEV, H2, CNG, LNG in all new registrations. Source: EAFO
Cargo-bike sales DE
E-cargo vs. conventional ('000 units). Source: ZIV
There is no consolidated, freely available EU time series for (e-)cargobike sales. Public figures circulate mostly as individual country values - e.g. for 2020: 103k DE, 25k DK, 16k NL, 12k FR (CONEBI sample).
HDV charging stations by country
Mixed-use & HDV-exclusive. Source: EAFO
Heavy electric HGV (>16 t) - price trend
Purchase price in €'000 (EU market). Sources: ICCT, OEM list prices. *Forecast.
AFIR: EU rules for HDV charging infrastructure
The heavy-truck charging network is going up now along your main routes - plan early and you secure the TCO edge.
- AFIR means business: by the end of 2030 the TEN-T core network needs a truck charging pool of at least 3,600 kW every 60 km, by the end of 2027 every 120 km.
- Germany leads the build-out but must accelerate sharply.
- Plan the switch early and you secure charging access and a cost edge before demand ramps.
Analysis as of 16 September 2026
Where does truck charging infrastructure stand in 2026?
The EU currently has 2,477 public charging stations for heavy-duty vehicles, as counted by the European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO). In Germany, 3,545 battery-electric trucks in classes N2 and N3 were newly registered in the latest reporting year. Both numbers are growing, but from a small base, and a long-haul electric truck needs charging power that no passenger-car fast charger delivers.
The federal government has therefore taken the motorway build-out into its own hands. At the end of June 2026, Autobahn GmbH awarded contracts for 836 truck charging points at 124 unmanaged rest areas, 447 of them with the Megawatt Charging System (MCS) and 389 with CCS. In total, around 350 sites at managed and unmanaged rest areas are planned. Until those sites are live, most fleets charge at the depot, and that is where the economics are decided: grid connection, load management and dwell times.
What AFIR requires by 2030
EU Regulation 2023/1804 on alternative fuels infrastructure (AFIR) has applied since April 2024 and sets minimum targets for truck charging pools along the trans-European transport network TEN-T:
By end of 2027: core network every 120 km
On half the length of the TEN-T core network, a charging pool every 120 km with at least 2,800 kW and at least two charging points of 350 kW each. On the comprehensive network, at least 1,400 kW every 120 km.
By end of 2030: core network every 60 km
A charging pool every 60 km with at least 3,600 kW and two charging points of 350 kW each; on the comprehensive network at least 1,500 kW every 100 km. In urban nodes at least 1,800 kW.
Safe and secure truck parking
By the end of 2027 at least two charging points of 100 kW each at every safe and secure truck parking area, by the end of 2030 at least four.
Source: Regulation (EU) 2023/1804, Article 4.
On top of that come the CO₂ fleet standards for manufacturers: average emissions of new trucks above 7.5 t must fall by 45 percent by 2030 compared with 2019, by 65 percent by 2035 and by 90 percent by 2040 (Regulation (EU) 2024/1610). Manufacturers therefore have to sell what the infrastructure can charge.
What this means for fleets and hauliers
The strongest lever today is the toll. Zero-emission trucks remain exempt from the German HGV toll until 30 June 2031; the Fourth Act amending toll law entered into force on 1 December 2025. For diesel trucks, a stricter classification into CO₂ classes has applied since 1 July 2026: a vehicle that was in class 3 in 2025 can since have dropped to class 2 or 1 and pays correspondingly more, without anything about the vehicle having changed.
Tax adds the special depreciation: for purely electric vehicles acquired between 1 July 2025 and 31 December 2027, 75 percent of the cost can be written off in the year of acquisition, including trucks and buses. This applies to purchases, not to leasing.
My position: for fleets with plannable routes that are back at the depot in the evening, the electric truck is a calculation, not a matter of faith. Tolls, depreciation and diesel prices can be worked out per vehicle; the depot charging infrastructure is the real investment. That is exactly what belongs in the ROI modelling of the Carbon Footprint & ROI Analysis.
Sources
- European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO), registrations and HDV charging infrastructure
- German Federal Ministry of Transport, Autobahn GmbH awards contracts for the e-truck fast-charging network, 2 Jul 2026
- Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure (AFIR), Article 4
- Regulation (EU) 2024/1610, CO₂ emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles
- German Federal Office for Logistics and Mobility, extension of the toll exemption for zero-emission trucks, December 2025
- Section 7 (2a) German Income Tax Act, special depreciation for electric vehicles (2025 investment programme)
Frequently asked questions on e-trucks, charging and tolls
How many electric HGVs are registered in Germany?
New registrations of battery-electric HGVs (BEV, categories N2/N3) are rising strongly in Germany. Current figures from the EAFO database are shown on this dashboard, updated quarterly.
How many HDV charging stations are there in the EU?
The EU is building public charging infrastructure for heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs). The AFIR regulation requires a truck charging pool on the TEN-T core network every 120 km by the end of 2027 and every 60 km by the end of 2030, with at least two charging points of 350 kW each. The dashboard shows current figures by country, updated monthly.
How is the cargo-bike market developing in Germany?
The German cargo-bike market is growing, driven mainly by e-cargo bikes. The ZIV (Zweirad-Industrie-Verband) publishes market data annually. E-cargo bikes now make up over 80 % of all cargo-bike sales.
How many truck charging points is Germany planning on motorways?
At the end of June 2026, the federal Autobahn GmbH awarded contracts for 836 truck charging points at 124 unmanaged rest areas, 447 of them with the Megawatt Charging System. In total, around 350 sites at managed and unmanaged rest areas are planned.
Until when are electric trucks exempt from the German toll?
Zero-emission trucks are exempt from the German HGV toll until 30 June 2031. The Fourth Act amending toll law entered into force on 1 December 2025. For diesel trucks, stricter thresholds for the CO₂ classes have applied since 1 July 2026.
What does AFIR require for truck charging infrastructure?
By the end of 2027, a charging pool every 120 km with at least 2,800 kW on half of the TEN-T core network; by the end of 2030 every 60 km with at least 3,600 kW and two charging points of 350 kW each. Safe and secure truck parking areas need at least four charging points of 100 kW each by the end of 2030.
Does any of this sound like your challenge?
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