Fleets urged to get involved in UK platooning trial

TRL – the Transport Research Laboratory – wants to hear from freight operators that could help contribute to the UK platooning trial.

The Department for Transport (DfT) and Highways England commissioned the UK HGV Platooning Project – Helm UK – in 2017.

The project will involve a series of platooning trials on UK roads which will help gather objective evidence on both the safety implications and the real-world benefits of platooning for the UK.

TRL, the lead partner on the project, wants to speak to UK freight operators to quantify the economic benefits of platooning for fleets.

The research will consider the likely adoption of platooning among fleet operators and the key opportunities and limitations of different platooning models.

Researchers want to interview freight operators who operate HGVs with box or curtain side trailers and undertake a significant proportion of driving on motorways or primary A-roads, for example the A1 in North East England or A9 in Scotland.

Interviews will take up to one hour in duration and will start in September 2021.

No prior knowledge or involvement in platooning is required ahead of the interview, but TRL says it will be providing some background information on platooning to help fleets assess the viability of the technology for their specific operation.

TRL says the insight is essential to determine the business case for platooning and whether it can successfully be deployed on UK roads.

Fleets willing to participate in the study should email helmuk@trl.co.uk.