Road Transport's Importance and Future

The pandemic has only temporarily reversed the trend of increasing international freight volumes
that goes hand in hand with the global integration of production and consumer markets.
Coordination of interactions across various forms of transportation, including air, sea, and land
freight, is necessary to maintain supply chains. What benefits and difficulties does road freight
present in this context?

Freight Transportation Methods - Comparison

The titles of the various modes of transportation already provide a basic explanation: sea freight is
delivered by ship over oceans and canals, air freight is conveyed by plane, and land freight is
transported on solid ground. The latter is further classified as rail freight and road freight.

Each of these techniques of freight transportation has benefits and drawbacks. Ships can carry the
most cargo and particularly big or heavy commodities, yet they are the slowest mode of
transportation. Air freight is the quickest alternative for great distances, but it is also the most
expensive, with restricted loading capacity. When it comes to land transport, rail has the highest
transit volume while also having the best environmental performance of any freight mode.

What does Road Freight mean?

Road freight is the transportation of products from one location to another (a loading and unloading
point) over a road network using motor vehicles. Commercial road freight transport is the
commercial transportation of products by logistics companies or forwarders. Thus, in-house
transfers organized by the firms themselves, such as between separate corporate sites within the
context of internal manufacturing processes, are not regarded as commercial freight transport.

Depending on the commodities being transported, several trucks are utilized in road freight. Road
freight laws, for example, only apply to cars with an empty weight of more than 3.5 t in EU member
states, which essentially implies that lighter vehicles are not covered by national criteria.

What Are the Benefits of Road Transport?

The primary benefits of road freight stem from the fact that no other mode of transportation has
access to similar infrastructure as trucks. When it comes to inland transportation, the road network
is by far the most extensive. This is true not only for Europe, but also for the United States.
Furthermore, road freight is not reliant on logistical centers like ports, airports, or railway stations,
and there are few destinations for products that are not reachable by road.

This also improves other forms of transportation, such as water, air, and train. In the great majority
of situations, extra road transport is required to move the products from the (air) port or railway
station to the facility or warehouse.

What Is the Future of Road Freight?

To secure its long-term profitability, road freight must face two major concerns. The first is an
environmental challenge, since trucking must become more environmentally friendly and
sustainable in order to compete; the second is a human resources issue.
Truck Digitization and Autonomous Driving

Digitization is advancing in many aspects of business and technology. Digital technology is

improving the functioning of automobiles in terms of mobility. Furthermore, digitalization is
offering up new opportunities for autonomous driving. To handle the issues of increased freight
volumes and manpower shortages in transportation logistics, self-driving trucks are a possibility.

Furthermore, computer-controlled automobiles can enhance driving and traffic flow via networking.
The energy savings that arise have a favorable influence on the environmental balance. Finally,
because computers do not make human errors, which are still the most prevalent cause of accidents,
autonomous trucks can increase overall road safety.

Conclusion

Road freight is the most appealing mode of transporting products for many businesses, owing to its
cost effectiveness and flexibility. The key priority for a sustainable future of road freight must be to
drastically minimize its ecological footprint: through the development of ecological drive
technologies and the optimum matching of transport quantities and necessary driving power.