Logistics companies are sceptical about the benefits of autonomous driving and are worried they could fall behind in digitalisation, according to a study by German technology giant Continental.

Through this study, Continental looked at trends and developments in the German transport industry for the second time since 2016. German trucking companies, logistics specialists and transport companies were surveyed on topics such as digitalisation, automation, vehicle technologies and general conditions in the industry.

The study also found that environmental protection was rapidly becoming more important in the transport industry, and the logistics specialists surveyed saw new players in transportation as another future challenge.

In terms of digitalisation, a clear image emerges in the study results. Many of the logistics professionals who were surveyed said digitalisation had already greatly changed the industry. Although the opportunities presented by digitalisation were perceived positively by some of the logistics companies, fear of missing the boat was the predominant feeling among the respondents, and that feeling has grown slightly comparison with the 2016 study.

“The transportation industry is in the midst of a major transformation process,” said Gilles Mabire, head of Continental’s commercial vehicles unit. “The players have seen that digitalisation has continued to accelerate in recent years, and now they see a need for action that will position them solidly for the future.”

The logistics experts surveyed still take a critical view of automation in the transport industry. Compared with the 2016 study, the number of those who are particularly sceptical or positive about automated driving has fallen slightly at both ends of the scale. However, only a small minority of the study participants still believe automated driving offers opportunities for the industry or drivers.

The study does have good news for the industry’s IT and telematics service providers: logistics companies are clearly more satisfied today with the software they are using. Compared with the 2016 study, the respondents gave consistently better marks to software that supports drivers, dispatchers and fleet managers.

Vehicle connectivity is becoming an increasingly important topic for the future, especially for larger fleets.

“Commercial vehicles are now the most connected vehicles anywhere,” said Mabire. “Logistics experts are looking for solutions that will make the best use of new technologies for them. Transport and fleet companies have already had experience with relevant software, and they appreciate the gain in efficiency. The immediate benefits outweigh the distant vision of autonomous driving.”

The industry’s attitude will hardly change as long as automated driving remains an abstract concept in discussions.

“Only when the legal framework becomes clearer and the first projects in automated zones such as port terminals or in hub-to-hub logistics show that automation can bring a very tangible benefit to companies will automated driving gain supporters,” he said.

As in the 2016 survey, increasing cost pressure and the competition for well-trained drivers continue to feature as the top two future challenges. The almost unanimous expectation is a further tightening of the prevailing conditions. However, logistics experts also see new challenges ahead for the industry.

Just under half of those surveyed fear that new players will intensify the competitive situation in the transport industry.

“Large shippers and online retailers that used to be customers of the transport companies are now building their own logistics infrastructures,” said Mabire. “The result of this is that logistics companies are not only losing their existing customers, but new players are entering the market.”

In the study, the logistics experts attribute greater importance to these new competitors than to shipping or rail transport.

The environment has meanwhile become much more important. Compared with the previous survey, environmental protection gained the most importance among the future challenges surveyed.

“Due to the global discussions about climate change, the logistics industry simply cannot push this topic aside,” said Mabire. “This study result also reflects specific policy measures, such as EU legislation to reduce CO₂ emissions from heavy transport, that are having a real impact on the industry. The big questions are how much the issue will be regulated by politics in the future and how logistics companies will act in terms of investment decisions. If shippers’ willingness to invest in environmental protection doesn’t increase, policymakers must focus on incentives to ensure the transport industry does its part to achieve climate-change goals.”