Sustainability

Freight transport not only represents one of the most dynamic and most crucial sectors of the European economy, but also account for a major share on the climate change and fuel reliance. The directional imbalance of transport flows, resulting in empty runs, is the main challenge to sustainability. Not only must the freight rate cover the costs of returning the empty tank truck, it also puts the transport sector into a place of one of the major CO2-polluters.

According to statistical data, one in four trucks travelling on Europe's roads is empty. One of the most auspicious measures to CO2 emission reduction that does not restrict further development of the transport industry at the same time is a reduction of the number of empty miles. A general practice indicates it is frequently challenging to secure a return load on every route and thus eliminate transportation disequilibrium. To be more precise, according to the European Freight Transport Statistics, the carbon intensity of a 40-44 tons truck fully loaded in both directions (with a 29 tons load) is roughly a third of that a similar vehicle carrying 10 tons when loaded and running 40% of its kilometers empty. For most EU countries, the empty kilometers apply mostly to the road tank transportation and constitute a bottleneck to sustainability and pollution.

More directed cooperation between shippers and carriers will help utilize the loading capacity, avoid unnecessary empty runs and, in the end, help reduce the CO2 emissions.

Freight transport activity in tons per kilometer is expected to nearly double by 2020. It is necessary to increase truckload efficiency and create a more environmental – friendly transportation by reducing the number of empty trucks on the road.