{"id":467735,"date":"2026-07-01T23:30:02","date_gmt":"2026-07-01T13:30:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=72308"},"modified":"2026-07-01T23:30:02","modified_gmt":"2026-07-01T13:30:02","slug":"a-rational-road-transport-strategy-could-put-rail-out-of-the-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=467735","title":{"rendered":"\u2018A rational road transport strategy could put rail out of the game\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

How do we reach our modal shift goals? Reliability and competitiveness are commonly mentioned as parts of the answer. Technological advancements in the rail industry should help distinguish it, but the road sector is not sitting still either. That could prove to be problematic, argues guest author Borys Ganaylyuk.<\/strong><\/p>\n

About the Author<\/strong>
\nBorys Ganaylyuk<\/a>, from Ukraine, is a physicist by training, with a career spanning research, economics, and industrial management. After starting out in a research institute, he transitioned into economic consulting and later led major automotive enterprises in Lviv. Since 2018, his focus has shifted to research on the Lviv railway junction<\/a>.<\/div>\n

Railways and the road sector have entered the next major phase of technological transformation from profoundly unequal starting positions. This new wave includes electrification of traction, autonomous driving, and information technologies with artificial intelligence as the \u201ccherry on top.\u201d However, innovation on the road could mean bad news for rail.
\n<\/span>Let\u2019s take a look at the upcoming technological advancements for trucks. Electrification has triggered further and deeper optimisation of operating costs in road freight transport. At the same time, autonomous driving addresses several long-standing constraints simultaneously: the shortage of drivers, driving-time limitations, average daily mileage, and \u2014 hopefully \u2014 road safety.<\/p>\n

Information technologies, combined with artificial intelligence, enable advanced optimisation of vehicle utilisation, load consolidation, and routing. Meanwhile, entirely new horizons are opening for the efficient use of renewable energy, primarily solar and wind, significantly improving their economic viability and payback.<\/p>\n

These developments also expand access for small shippers to affordable, individualised transport services (optimally in the range of 6\u20138 tonnes, but potentially even from a single unit), thereby reducing the role of large, global logistics players.<\/p>\n

\"Electric
Electric trucks are becoming an increasingly common sight across Europe. Image: Shutterstock \u00a9 VanderWolf Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Real-world use<\/h2>\n

Most of these technologies have already moved beyond theory. They have been tested and are reaching practical deployment under real operating conditions, including across parts of Asia and the New World.<\/p>\n

In this seemingly ideal picture, there is only one obvious drawback: a swarm of autonomous vehicles flooding motorways (often forming long, tightly spaced convoys to reduce aerodynamic drag, which is precisely why the traditional debate over vehicle mass and size becomes largely irrelevant) as well as roads and urban streets. This could be safe and efficient, but endless in number.<\/p>\n

Rail, as a far more rigid system and in principle better suited to electrification and autonomous operation, has nevertheless fallen significantly behind. In its current form, it is clearly unable to counter this scenario \u2014 one that is no longer entirely hypothetical. A rational road innovation strategy could end rail\u2019s ambitions.<\/p>\n

Level playing field<\/h2>\n

Railways, however, still have a chance to return to the game. This is only possible in a fundamentally new incarnation, supported by a transport policy that creates a level playing field between road and rail rather than treating them as competing worlds.<\/p>\n

Solutions for rail to keep up with road transport could be found in equalising (harmonising) the conditions of maintenance and access to roads and rail, as well as (lighter) rolling stock, specifically adapted for intermodal transport. A supply of suitable terminal facilities, enabling short-distance intermodal services, situational awareness of railways’ condition and the elimination of level crossings are other key areas where progress can be made.<\/p>\n