California to expand emissions testing with new $419M center

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — California has a new $419 million research facility that will allow state air quality regulators to expand emissions testing for heavy duty vehicles. Officials on Thursday dedicated the center in the city of Riverside that will allow for more checks on heavy duty vehicles such as trucks, buses and bulldozers in addition to passenger cars. It replaces a nearly 50-year-old lab in nearby El Monte that state officials credit with helping to detect the Volkswagen diesel emissions cheating scandal. The state of about 40 million people has long been viewed as a clean air regulations leader.