CAD at the IRU workshop

On 6 February 2020, the International Road Transport Union (IRU) organised a workshop on “Social and training aspects of automation in road transport: what next?” in Brussels.

The workshop discussed the impact of increasing automation on the workforce in the transport sector. The driver profession will also change along the way from the current level 3, through level 4 (over the coming years), up to level 5 – reaching full driving automation. Level 5 will first impact specific situations such as driving in vehicle platooning, driving on construction sites and driving in dedicated lanes/sites, such as in bus rapid transit. Driver training will have to be adapted alongside.  Therefore, the objective of this workshop was to bring together knowledge, including the most advanced practical knowledge from the sector regarding automation in professional road transport. The potential impact on the future of driver profiles and expected future training needs were also examined.

The “Research and innovation activities related to connected and automated driving” session at the workshop familiarised participants with EU projects in automated road transport: ARCADE and Drive2theFuture. Drive2TheFuture aims to prepare drivers, travellers and vehicle operators to use connected, cooperative and automated (CCAD) modes while presenting the industry with wants and needs of CCAD users. It is currently undertaking a consumer survey on the acceptance of autonomous vehicles for different transport modes. You can participate in an online survey here.