Up to 60% savings from SA smart truck programme

South Africa’s smart truck

programme has the makings

of an exceptional green

freight programme that can

easily be implemented across

the country, according to

Buddy Polovick from the

United States Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA).

Polovick, a team leader

for SmartWay – an EPA

programme that helps

the freight transportation

sector improve supply chain

efficiency in the US by

reducing transportationrelated

emissions, reduce

environmental risk for

companies and increase

global energy security – said

looking at the programme,

he was convinced that South

Africa was “well on track"

to implementing its own

programme that would

benefit the sector.

With a looming carbon

tax set to be introduced

by government, and everincreasing

logistics costs,

South African freight

operators are under pressure

to address efficiency and

sustainability.

According to Gavin

Kelly of the Road Freight

Association (RFA) there

are currently 320 vehicles

operating under the South

African smart trucks (PBS)

programme. “These vehicles

operate in a variety of

sectors, including passenger,

car carriers, bulk ore, bulk

fuel, livestock, timber, sugar

and bulk liquids,” he said.

Whilst the exact details of

this pilot project – the nature

of the project, the outcomes

and intended implications –

have still not been received

from the Department of

Transport, the project has

seen some achievements that

have been made public.

This includes

savings in

terms of trips

– depending on

application and

type of cargo

– of up to 60%

and also fuel

savings of up to

20%.

Polovick

said while it

was clearly

only a pilot

project and not

much was known about it,

the programme set a good

standard for the country to

build on.

“Our

programme

in the US has

been running

for about 15

years and we

have more

than 3 000

partners. All

of the top

100 trucking

companies are

a part of this

programme.”

He said EPA launched

the programme in an effort

to address increasing costs

and to reduce the US’s

greenhouse gas emissions.

“The programme, which

is the first green programme

for freight in the world, has

been extremely successful

with the operators making

very real savings,” said

Polovick. “A SmartWay

tractor and trailer annually

saves 2 000 to 4 000 gallons

of fuel and reduces CO2

emissions by up to 20%,

compared with similar trucks

on the road.”

He said South Africa

could easily

apply some

of the lessons

learned in the

US as well.

“There are

many common

challenges

that South

Africa and

the US share.

South Africa

already has

the foundation

for a green programme, and

by taking the lessons we have

learnt and implementing

some of our tried-and-tested

strategies, it can leapfrog

significantly.”

Polovick said economies

such as South Africa’s, which

were highly dependent

on trucks, would find it

impossible not to implement

a strict green freight

programme as sustainability

and environmental issues

were a top global concern.

INSERT & CAPTION

A SmartWay tractor

and trailer annually

saves 2 000 to 4 000

gallons of fuel.

– Buddy Polovick

CAPTION

An example of a SmartWay tractor and trailer. Photo: US EPA