New cross-border initiative to accelerate autonomous transports

The MODI project will demonstrate automated heavy-haul vehicles without safety drivers use cases on the motorway corridor from Rotterdam in the Netherlands to Moss in Norway, crossing four national borders and demonstrating terminal operations at four different harbours and terminals en route. 

Automated transport - the future of logistics 

Automated transport can significantly contribute to improving European transport and logistic chains. The MODI research project will make substantial steps toward identifying and resolving barriers preventing this from coming true. 

Introducing innovative, connected, cooperative and automated mobility (CCAM) can lead to many positive societal effects, such as safer and more efficient transport everywhere and for everyone. 

Even though the development of automated transport is accelerating, there are still many hindrances to overcome before we see a full-scale introduction of such transportation. These are related to the maturity of the technology itself but also to regulations, harmonisations, and social acceptance. The hindrances escalate when considering border-crossing transport. 

With ITS Norway as project coordinator the ground-breaking MODI project aims to solve these challenges and speed up the introduction of highly automated freight vehicles. 

Five use cases

The project comprises five use cases, each describing a part of the logistics chain. It identifies what is required for automated driving level without human interaction (SAE level 4) and will focus on understanding and overcoming the regulatory barriers and infrastructure shortcomings on the motorway corridor for public roads. The project will also investigate the needs related to confined areas, terminals located by Rotterdam, Hamburg, Gothenburg, and Moss ports. Each terminal focuses on challenges like access control, charging, coordination with automated guided vehicles, loading/unloading and handover from public to confined areas. 

In addition to the demonstrations, MODI provides detailed business models for the logistics sector, demonstrating that CCAM vehicles can lead to greater profits, especially when driving in a coordinated way. 

The project will be rolled out from October 2022 for 3.5 years and the funding grant is € 23 Million for a total budget of approximately € 28 Million to test and validate the implementation of CCAM solutions for real-logistics operations.

The maturity and mix of partners paves the way for the replicability of MODI outcomes. The consortium comprises 29 partners, of whom 16 are representing industrial organisations, vehicle providers, logistics, and associations, 8 research organisations and universities, and 5 road authorities, public bodies, and cities/regions along the corridor, representing the complete value chain.
 

Read a press release from MODI here

For more information about Lindholmen Science Park’s participation in MODI, contact Ted Kruse. Find his contact information below.