This paper discusses several aspects of the likely future impact of telematics (also known as information technology or IT) on transport in France. Companies which do not take full account of IT systems, especially in logistics and management of flows, will become much less competitive; telecommunications will help to improve their quality of service. Future uses of IT will be based on integrated services digital networks (ISDNs) and also on value added networks (VANs) which add value to the information that they transmit. Interactive electronic mail systems, using EDI (electronic data interchange), will develop as a reaction to the risk of giant `paper mountains' in Europe. Co-operative standardisation projects, such as OSI (Open Systems Interconnection), EDI and the recently launched TEDIS (Trade Electronic Data Interchange System) will become increasingly important. In view of the scale of transport operations and the massiveness of the problems still to be resolved, the author finds it difficult to estimate the pace of the progress that will be made in applying IT to transport during the 1990s, even though IT has already been applied successfully to several airline booking systems. EDI will be required for the successful implementation of the Single European Market of 1992.
Samenvatting