Euro-Trash - Why The UK Transport Industry Needs To Wake Up To Europe's Future, And Why Telematics Will Be Crucial

Europe's roads will change dramatically between now and 2050. 

Transport groups and UK politicians have been trashing the European Commission's newest plans to rid cities of petrol-fueled vehicles by the year 2050. 

The plans were revealed in a white paper published yesterday in which the EC called for  €1.5 billion in infrastructure investments to create a 'Single European Transport Area' over the next two decades. The white paper also calls for a swathe of  pro-green measures to ensure the EU cuts its transport emissions by 60 percent by 2050.

Suggested moves include laws requiring road freight transport travelling in excess of 300km to be shifted to rail or waterborne transport.

UK politicians dismissed the document - basically telling Brussels to keep its nose out of British roads and town centres. "We will not be banning cars from city centres any more than we will be having rectangular bananas," said UK transport minister Norman Baker.

And Ivan Hodac, secretary general of the automobile industry's trade association (ACEA), called the proposal to shift long distance haulage from the roads to rail and water "a mistake". 

But there's no question that the EC is serious about introducing measures to slash emissions and rid its cities of heavy vehicles. And quite frankly, companies have got to face up to the fact that they are going to have to be more careful about planning long distance travel - and not just because of ever-spiralling fuel costs. 

All of which is going to mean that telematics and vehicle tracking devices are going to play an increasingly important part in fleet management. And technology like iBox's popular 'Eco-Mate', 'Trac-Mate' and 'Tele-Mate' will be crucial in this new, more heavily regulated environment, allowing managers to locate their drivers and vehicles, monitor their emissions and fuel efficiency and communicate with them as they travel around Europe's more tightly-controlled road networks. 

For details about how we can help you navigate your way around the Europe of the future, contact iBox or visit our website www.iboxtechnology.co.uk