Truck Platooning Market: What are the Key Growth Factors?

In recent years, the popularity of truck platooning has surged massively. This has been primarily because of the various advantages offered by this technology, such as safer, cleaner, and more efficient road transport. Moreover, truck platooning assists in reducing the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and the consumption of fuel by trucks. As per the European Federation for Transport and Environment, emissions produced by trucks contribute around 25% of the total road transport emissions currently. 

Furthermore, according to an Intelligent Transportation System for Commercial Vehicles (ITS4CV) study conducted by the European Road Transport Telematics Implementation Coordination (ERTICO), platooning can massively reduce CO2 emissions, with up to 8% reduction in emissions from the leading truck and 16% reduction from the trailing truck. In addition, truck platooning can also massively improve the safety levels in truck transportation. For instance, braking under the truck platooning system is automatic and immediate, with the trucks following the lead truck needing less time (around one-fifth) than the normal human reaction time to brake. 

Apart from this, platooning also assists in route optimization, which helps drivers in increasing the truck’s driving range. It also enables the driver to perform other work-related tasks, such as doing paperwork and making calls. Owing to these factors, the demand for truck platooning is surging sharply, which is, in turn, fueling the expansion of the global truck platooning market. Truck platooning basically involves the optimum usage of autonomous driving technologies, which not only mitigates the chances of road accidents, but also, improves the trucks’ overall operational efficiency and assists fleet operators in making significant savings on maintenance and fuel costs. 

Human-machine interface (HMI), global positioning system (GPS), forward collision warning (FCW), lane keep assist (LKA), autonomous emergency braking (AEB), adaptive cruise control (ACC), and blind spot warning (BSW) are the major technologies used in truck platooning systems. Amongst these, the demand for the ACC technology is predicted to rise at the fastest pace in the coming years. This is because the ACC technology is highly critical in truck platooning, as it assists in maintaining optimum distance between trucks in a platoon via the utilization of radio signals and adjusting the speed of the trucks.

Across the globe, the demand for truck platooning will surge sharply in North America in the coming years, as per the estimates of P&S Intelligence, a market research company based in India. This is attributed to the rapid advancements in the autonomous vehicle technology and the increasing concerns being raised over vehicle safety, owing to the rising incidence of road accidents in the region. Moreover, the use of autonomous vehicle technologies is rising rapidly in the U.S., on account of the implementation of various favorable government initiatives in the country.

Hence, it is safe to say that the demand for truck platooning will soar in the coming years, primarily because of the various benefits of this technology and the growing requirement for greater vehicle safety across the world.