The SARTRE project, Safe Road Trains for the Environment has successfully completed the first test demonstrations of a multiple vehicle platoon. The test fleet included a lead truck followed by three cars driven entirely autonomously at speeds of up to 90 km/h – with no more than 6 metres gap between the vehicles.

According to retail sales data compiled by WardsAuto Group, Volvo Trucks in 2011 recorded the North American heavy-duty truck industry’s largest market share gain of the year. Volvo also hit a company record market share of 12.1 percent of the combined U.S. and Canadian retail market, and reached record penetration levels for its proprietary engines and innovative I-Shift automated manual transmission.

In 2010, global CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuels rose by more than 5% according to the International Energy Agency. At the same time the vehicle industry dedicates huge amounts of resources to reducing CO2 by just a few percentage points. However, minor adjustments to vehicles can have a surprisingly large effect on fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, according to a study by Volvo Trucks and Michelin.