The government have announced that small convoys of partially self-driving lorries will be tested on major British roads by the end of 2018.
A contract has been handed out to the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) to carry out the tests of vehicle ‘platoons’.
As many as three lorries will travel in formation, with the lead vehicle controlling the speed, acceleration and braking. In the platoons, the lead vehicle will be controlled by a human driver, with the rest of the convoy being connected wirelessly. The following vehicles will be instructed to accelerate and brake by the lead vehicle, which will allow the lorries to drive closer together than they could if the platoon was controlled by human drivers.
But there have been some safety concerns from the AA.
How do they work?
Lorries driving closer together should reduce the amount of air resistance for the following vehicles, providing that the front lorry pushes air out of the way. This could then lead to fuel efficiency savings for haulage companies, which Transport Minister Paul Maynard hopes will be passed on to consumers.
Swannells Transport – Haulage Companies in Cambridgeshire
With the following vehicles being connected wirelessly, it would allow the vehicles to react more quickly if the lead lorry was to quickly brake, quicker than human drivers would be able to, not only does this allow the lorries to drive closer together but it will also hopefully reduce the chances of potential accidents.
Whilst the lorries in convoy will react to acceleration and braking on their own, a human driver is needed to steer the lorries in the platoon.
The TRL will begin trials of the technology on test tracks, but these trials are expected to move to major roads by the end of next year.
Swannells – Haulage Companies in Cambridgeshire
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