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the safety of running such a long continuous line of trucks on the UK’s roads. After trials in a “controlled” environment away from the public roads, it is anticipated that the first trial is likely to occur in 2018.


Mainland Europe In Europe it has been announced that DB Schenker, MAN Truck & Bus, and the Hochschule Fresenius University of Applied Sciences have begun deploying networked trucks for the first time in a practical application within the logistics industry. The move marks the next stage of testing of platooning technology within the road freight sector, seen as a stepping- stone towards the introduction of autonomous vehicles. Vehicle manufacturer MAN handed over the


Truck platooning trials


Platooning trials are being planned in the UK, while on the continent, the deployment of networked trucks has already begun


The Department for Transport (DfT) and Highways England announced last August that it had commissioned the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL), the global centre of innovation in transport and mobility, to lead the first real- world operational trial of platooning vehicles on UK roads. The £8.1 million trial will see TRL lead a


consortium of partners including DAF Trucks, the UK market leader of heavy goods vehicle (HGV) sales, Ricardo, which worked with TRL to deliver the HGV platooning feasibility study for the DfT in 2014, and DHL.


Support your local The platooning trials will see up to three heavy


goods vehicles travelling in convoy with acceleration and braking controlled by the lead vehicle. All lorries in the platoon will always have a driver ready to take control at any time.


Pros and cons It is argued that platooning reduces pollution because the first truck pushes the air out of the way reducing resistance and thus increasing fuel efficiency and reducing pollution for the subsequent trucks in the platoon. There are counter-concerns, mainly relating to


Member group BIFA holds Regional Member meetings around the UK and listed right are those due to occur soon. If you would like to attend and find out more about BIFA and what we do, then contact the appropriate Regional Consultant to BIFA. All BIFA Members are entitled and


encouraged to attend their regional meetings however pre-booking with the named contact is essential.


Region Gatwick


Regional Members’ meeting Solent


Regional Members’ meeting Anglia


Regional Members’ meeting London East


Regional Members’ meeting Heathrow


Regional Members’ meeting Full contact details are shown on page 3 of this issue. Date


Thu 12 April Tue 17 April Tue 17 April Thu 19 April Thu 26 April


test vehicles for the joint platooning project to DB Schenker at its headquarters in Munich, Germany, in February 2018 for trials taking place in two phases over a three-year period from January 2017 to December 2019. The first phase will focus on designing, testing


and refining the truck platooning technology to adapt to local conditions, with the trials initially conducted by Scania and Toyota in their respective research centres in Sweden and Japan, to leverage their existing development work. Depending on the outcomes of the phase 1


trials, one of the companies will be selected for phase 2, which will consist of local trials and some development of the technology in Singapore. The first platooning trials took place as long


ago as 2012, when a Volvo truck led a platoon of vehicles on a public motorway in Spain for around 200 km as part of the EU-funded Safe Road Trains for the Environment (SARTRE) project – a joint-venture between seven European partners, including Volvo Trucks. If anybody has any comments on this matter, please contact r.windsor@bifa.org


Time Venue BIFA Contact


1230 Air & Cargo Services, Colin Young Crawley


0800 Duke of Wellington, Colin Young Southampton


1000 Holiday Inn Orwell, Paul Newman Ipswich


1100 DP World, London Gateway 1400 BIFA, Redfern House Colin Young Paul Newman


April 2018


17


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