Truck-based transportation is the predominant mode used to transport goods and raw materials within the United States. While trucks play a major role in local commerce, a significant portion of truck activity is also long haul in nature. Long-haul truck drivers are continuously faced with the problem of not being able to secure a safe parking spot since many rest areas become fully occupied, and information about parking and availability is limited. Truck drivers faced with full parking lots/facilities either continue driving until a safe parking spot is located or park illegally....
The Program on Advanced Technology for the Highway (PATH), has been established in response to funding by the United States Congress and the California Legislature to demonstrate how "high technology" might be applied to improve highway transportation. PATH's goal, in the short run, is to implement technologies which promise significant relief of acute problemsincluding traffic congestion, air pollution and energy use. Alternative systems of vehicle guidance and control, navigation, propulsion, and communication will be studied and/or developed. The impacts of these systems on highway...
This paper extends previous research on Computer Integrated Transportation (CIT) to commercial vehicle operations (CVO), specifically to examine how government can work with trucking companies within a CIT framework. The research entailed a review of how government currently interacts with trucking companies, interviews with trucking terminal managers, and case-studies on terminal operations at five of the nation's largest motor carriers. Opportunities are identified in the area of unifying interaction between government and industry and in the area of in- vehicle devices for automated...
Traffic congestion and trucking activities in the San Francisco Bay Area are increasing due to the rapid population growth and economic expansion. It is imperative to explore transportation alternatives, and the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system, with 63 percent unused capacity on average in non-peak hours, presents such an opportunity. If BART’s service is extended to include air-freight movement, extra revenue can be generated, truck miles travelled on highways will be reduced (potentially leading to a reduced traffic congestion and pollution), and traffic safety could be improved....