The future impact of information technology in road freight transport

Abstract

It can be observed that in the past years and in recent years, information technology (IT) trends such as artificial intelligence (AI), internet of things (IoT), cloud computing and big data have been impacting transportation and logistics, in particular road freight transport. However, the future influence of these technologies in road freight transport is not known. Therefore, this thesis aims to investigate the future impact of IT trends in road freight transport. This study was explored through examining the contribution of the chosen IT trends on the selected key performance indicators (KPIs). Data for the research was collected through telematic interviews from six companies and it was interpreted by the use of a mathematical model called Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The results showed that AI, IoT and big data are the IT trends that will influence road freight transport in the future, while the other trends will have less and no impact on road freight transport.