The volume of freight transport on European roads has increased over the years and is expected to grow significantly in the next decade. Increasing gross weights and changing load configurations of heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) has led to an accelerated damage to bridges and pavements as well as major traffic management problems. The consequences are raising costs for maintaining roads in a good and safe condition and a network operating at sub-optimum efficiency with increasing capacity, safety and environmental impacts. Truck operators face the combined challenges of reducing ever increasing fuel costs, maximising efficiency and profitability whilst maintaining safety. Truck drivers have the additional tasks of ensuring compliance with driver's working hours regulations and finding appropriate, safe and secure rest areas. One major support for all three parties would come from the improvement in the generation and usage of digital maps for trucks in Europe that will effectively link Europe's road infrastructure via electronic mapping systems to the truck operators and drivers. The HeavyRoute project aims to develop an advanced route guidance system for HGVs as a tool for deriving the safest and the most cost effective routes for road freight transports throughout Europe. The system will for the first time take into full account road user needs, vehicle operating and environmental costs as well as maintenance costs for the road owner/manager due to deterioration of roads and bridges. The system will be built on available and implemented technologies such as fleet management and logistics systems, guidance/rerouting systems, traffic monitoring and management systems, dynamic map updating and various ITS solutions. Working with all the major stakeholders, with FEHRL and ERTICO as partners with unique links to Road Authorities, industry and suppliers, the unique aspects of HeavyRoute will pave the way for future large-scale development of a robust pan-European system (A). Only abstract (as above) is available from the conference proceedings. For the covering abstract of the conference see ITRD E212343.
Samenvatting