ITS UK: freight experts call for technology to support deliveries

Members of ITS (UK)’s Freight Interest Group have raised concerns that relying on autonomous vehicles and platooning to provide future solutions may be diverting attention away from current technology which could help in the short-to-medium-term, at the Industry 4.0 Summit in Manchester. The group suggested that logistics efficiency could be improved by better communication with light goods vehicle drivers. Additionally, signal timing technology could decrease the number of stops that Heavy Goods Vehicles
March 5, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

Members of ITS (UK)’s Freight Interest Group have raised concerns that relying on autonomous vehicles and platooning to provide future solutions may be diverting attention away from current technology which could help in the short-to-medium-term, at the Industry 4.0 Summit in Manchester.

The group suggested that logistics efficiency could be improved by better communication with light goods vehicle drivers. Additionally, signal timing technology could decrease the number of stops that Heavy Goods Vehicles make in towns and city centres to help reduce congestion and emissions, and that this technology has been successful with lorries transporting wings for Airbus planes moving to Bristol.

At the event, the forum heard how the production of some goods are finished and packaged locally in an added value logistics warehouse or fulfilment centre and then taken the last few miles for delivery. The new ways of working highlight the need for the logistics industry to utilise alternatives to deiseal lorries to comply with green city aspirations.

Geoff Clarke, hon secretary of the Freight Interest Group of %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external AECOM Aecom Website Link false http://www.aecom.com/ false false%>, said: “It was heartening to hear many interesting ideas for using technology to assist logistics in the future. Many of those solutions exist today in the passenger transport industry and could easily be used by and for freight companies as well. At the event where the way factories will operate in the future was showcased, it is clear that the freight industry will have to embrace more technology in order to keep up.”

Jennie Martin, ITS (UK) secretary general, added: “The Industry 4.0 Summit showed a lot about how the Internet of Things and blockchain will revolutionise manufacturing, and with logistics as a key part of the supply chain, there are many opportunities for the technology to play its part in the delivery of those goods as well. ITS (UK)'s range of expertise can help facilitate an understanding of these emerging solutions.

Related Content

  • USDOT offers free webinar on the connected vehicle workforce
    August 28, 2015
    The USDOT's Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Professional Capacity Building (PCB) Program is to host a free Talking Technology and Transportation (T3) webinar to discuss workforce skills that support the future connected vehicle (CV) environment. The webinar, entitled Connected Vehicle Workforce, is scheduled for 10 September from 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm EST.
    Read More
  • Survey finds speed, red light cameras divide Americans
    March 12, 2015
    A new survey from free legal information website FindLaw.com found that 52 per cent of Americans support the use of radar speed cameras, while 48 per cent oppose them. Advocates say the cameras increase safety, but opponents contend they are often little more than revenue grabs by communities seeking to fill their local coffers. Interestingly, there is a split between men and women on the issue – a majority of women support the use of speed cameras while a majority of men oppose it. Ohio recently adopted a
    Read More
  • Instamac promotes UltraCrete repair product
    March 22, 2018
    UK company Instarmac International is promoting its UltraCrete Instant Road Repair pothole repair product and offering it to licensees worldwide. UltraCrete is a first-time permanent repair that has been continuously developed over the past 40 years and used around the world. It is used on a daily basis in all climates, from the snowbound island of Hokkaido in Japan, to the tropical monsoon-hit roads of Malaysia and the heat of the Namibian desert. UltraCrete repairs can be returned to operational use
    Read More
  • US DOT announces ITS video challenge
    May 21, 2012
    The US Department of Transportation's Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA) has announced the ITS Video Challenge, a new national competition showcasing innovative ways that local communities use smart transportation technology to improve safety, mobility and the environment.
    Read More

Highlighted Content