Fuel efficiency training in a full-mission truck simulator

The reasons for the relatively slow adoption of simulation as a key component of professional truck driver training are explored. The UK Departmentfor Transport commissioned TRL Limited to investigate the feasibility of a truck driving simulator tailored to the needs of the UK road haulage industry. The full system became operational in October 2003 and from November to March 2004 over 600 drivers took part in training and validation trials. The main focus was to provide analysis of the efficiency and acceptability of training exercises provided within the synthetic environment. The TRUCKSIM equipment is described. A comparison was made across age groups of driving style during the initial (pre-training) drive and then a series of analyses focussed on the difference between each driver's first and second drives. Fuel efficiency training reduced the number of gear changes by11%, decreased the time taken to complete the route by 6% and gave a 3.5%improvement in fuel efficiency. No evaluation of carry-over of the effects into the real driving environment was carried out and further studies are planned. For the covering abstract see ITRD E157496