Newsletter

Dear HVTT Forum subscriber, This month’s newsletter focuses on the status and challenges regarding the uptake of electric cars and heavy vehicles in South Africa. I would like to acknowledge two HVTT Forum Board members, Michael Atkins (Senior Lecturer, Wits University, Johannesburg) and Abdool (AK) Kamdar (Manager: Decarbonisation and Drive to Zero, KDG Logistics, Durban) as well as one of Michael’s MSc students, Arnold Matiane, for providing the bulk of the material for this newsletter. There has been a surge in sales of EVs in South Africa, driven by government incentives such as the 150% investment allowance for new EV investments starting in 2026 and the strategic release of the Electric Vehicle White Paper, which outlines a comprehensive roadmap for the transition to new energy vehicles by 2035 (NAAMSA). Additionally, rising fuel costs and environmental concerns are pushing consumers toward EVs as a more sustainable option. NAAMSA reported that new... Read More

10 years of the National Decree 574 enabling the Bi-trains in Argentina. What was done right and were did it all go wrong (in my opinion) This past April 22 marked 10 years since the legislation that approved the national circulation of the 30 meter- 75 ton- 9 axles bitrain in Argentina was passed. The then President explained at a rally what the bitrains were, all the benefits for productivity, road safety and the environment they could bring to the country, all broadcasted on national TV. Not everyone was happy with the news, so it took another 18 months for the more detailed regulations to be published – and not online, since there was so much negative arguing at an election year. Only those- like myself- who were “in the know” could go personally to the Transport Ministry and get the printed regulations. I would like to take the chance... Read More

Dear HVTT Forum subscriber, Over the past few months, I have had the pleasure of working alongside my colleagues from Québec and an international Program Committee to begin the work of organizing HVTT18! In this newsletter, I highlight six key topics that we look forward to exploring at the Symposium, so that we can collectively shape the future of S2MART road freight transport systems. Sustainable Efforts toward decarbonization of road freight transport in North America moved forward as the United States Joint Office of Energy and Transportation released its strategy for establishing national zero-emission freight corridors. The strategy sets the stage for significant policy action and investment: “The United States has committed to decarbonizing freight transportation by advancing deployment of commercial zero-emission medium- and heavy-duty vehicles (ZE-MHDVs) and infrastructure.” Safe and Modern How prepared is existing U.S. roadway infrastructure for Automated Driving Systems (ADS) technology? A new open-source data repository designed to support... Read More

Dear HVTT Forum member, Time really flies! Even though it feels not so long ago when I met many of you at fantastic HVTT17 in Brisbane,  it has already been nearly 5 months. Looking ahead, I would like to start this newsletter to remind you the call for abstracts for HVTT18, which will take a place in Québec City, Canada next year. Short abstracts (300 to 500 words) are due on April 19, 2024 covering one or more of the conference topics, from theoretical to practical applications. Submission of ongoing research is encouraged if meaningful results are expected before the full paper submission deadline. More information on conference topics and submission procedure can be found on here. As for the weather in Europe, we are just entering a nice spring period after a fairly mild winter with very little snow throughout the continent and varying levels of precipitation per country.... Read More

Hello everyone, February 10, 2024, is the traditional Chinese festival – Spring Festival. I would like to wish everyone a successful and prosperous new year. In 2023, there were new changes in China’s transportation industry. The average daily cross-regional passenger flow reached 160 million people, and the daily volume of goods transportation exceeded 150 million tons. Additionally, 360 million parcels were collected each day. The use of new energy and clean energy equipment accelerated, with new energy vehicles accounting for 77.6% in the public transportation system. These achievements were supported by a robust transportation system and also reflect the vigorous driving force of China’s economy. In January 2024, the State Council of China issued the “Opinions on Comprehensive Promotion of Beautiful China Construction,” which clearly planned to implement the carbon peak action in a step-by-step manner, striving to achieve carbon peak before 2030 and laying a foundation for carbon neutrality... Read More

Dear HVTT Forum community, This is somewhat of a first in HVTT Forum history: a monthly newsletter from the Information Officer! This was an idea which came out of discussions following HVTT17, and which I hope will be helpful in keeping the community informed of our ongoing digital activities. In keeping with HVTT newsletter conventions, I will include a few regional updates from the UK and, of course, a note on the weather. HVTT17 papers and photos First, I am very pleased to announce that all papers presented at HVTT17 in Brisbane are now available for download on our website here. The search box lets you quickly filter by first author, paper title, or session number. For more advanced searching our website-wide search function is always available which will search through all material including paper contents and the newsletter archive. (This is accessed via the magnifying glass icon on the... Read More

December newsletter from Immediate Past President, Loes Aarts, and new President Gavin Hill Dear HVTT Forum family My two terms as President of the International Forum for Heavy Vehicle Transport & Technology are now over. My presidency was marked by the farewell to the founding fathers of the HVTT Forum, the evolution from the International Forum for Road Transport Technology (IFRTT) to the International Forum for Heavy Vehicle Transport & Technology (HVTT Forum), COVID-19, and the further convergence of road, vehicles and logistics as one system. Bringing together different disciplines to achieve synergy in order to make road freight transport more efficient, safer and more sustainable is the foundation of the organization. With great enthusiasm, the founding fathers built an international community from which later generations continue to reap the benefits to this day. It was very important to me to rejuvenate and renew the organization in such a way... Read More

Dear friends of the HVTT Forum, On October 28, 2014 I made my debut as presenter of a paper at HVTT13 in San Luis, Argentina. I did not really know what to expect from HVTT and I had originally planned to attend only that one day. However, the warm reception from the organizers and from participants made me stay the whole week. The program was packed with interesting and useful information. This was a community that I wanted to be part of. The “love at first sight” was reciprocated and I was elected to the board and was even made vice president, Asia. The board gave me a clear and simple task: get China and more countries in Asia involved in the HVTT community. We agreed that one of the next HVTT should be held in China. HVTT14 was held in New Zealand with the first representative from the Chinese... Read More

Dear HVTT Forum family  I’m writing to you from Sydney, Australia, where we’re experiencing a warm beginning to Spring (more on this later).  With only a handful of weeks to go before Technology Convergence 2023 – the joint conference of the 17th International Symposium for Heavy Vehicle Transport & Technology (HVTT17) and the  9th International Conference on Weigh-In-Motion (ICWIM9) – you’ll need to forgive me for making it a focus of this newsletter.  The final countdown to Technology Convergence 2023 Technology Convergence 2023 is now only five weeks away!  After two years of planning and behind-the-scene activities, we’re on the cusp of hosting a global conference which will showcase the latest research, knowledge, and developments aimed at advancing the management of heavy vehicles, roads and freight.  As you’ll recall, the decision to hold HVTT17 and ICWIM9 together into a single conference leverages the strong and long-standing relationships between the International... Read More

Only a couple of months and HVTT17 starts! OMG! Well done to the organizers, your patience with all of us authors and attendees hopefully will be rewarded…   Figure 1 – Road Sign in La Puna    Well, it has been a bumpy road since last HVTT and I am looking forward to meeting you all. In this particular newsletter, I would like to write about lithium mining in South America´s “lithium triangle” and how multinational companies´ sustainable reporting requirements on their global supply chains may be just the right trigger to motivate local transport companies in the use of safe and productive heavy vehicle transport technologies and systems. By the way, it is the subject that I shall be presenting in Brisbane as well.   Lithium has become a key element in the transition of the global economy from fossil fuel to renewable energy. The World Economic Forum wrote in January... Read More