A world-first platooning trial will be showcased in East London next week, showing off lorries which enabled them to travel in a platoon, with speed and braking of following lorries reacting to the actions of the lead vehicle.
HelmUK, led by TRL, was the world’s first HGV platooning trial to take place in a live commercial operating environment. Three lorries were specially adapted with platooning technology, which allowed the space between the lorries to be substantially decreased without increasing the risk to other road users.
The event on 14 July for the end of project showcase, hosted by BBC’s Science & Innovation correspondent Richard Westcott, hears from industry experts and members of the consortium, who will discuss the project’s achievements and the implications of the findings for the road freight industry and for road operators – as well as the value of the trial results in the context of the wider transport automation and decarbonisation agendas.
The HelmUK trials are funded by the Department for Transport and delivered under the technical leadership of National Highways. The project was carried out by the HelmUK consortium formed of programme lead, TRL and the partners DAF Trucks UK, DHL, Connected Places Catapult, UTAC, TNO, Ricardo, Costain, Apollo Vehicle Safety, VisionTrack.
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(Picture and graphic – TRL)
