Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - August 2024 - 18

EURO NCAP
details new testing for
heavy-truck safety rating
Euro NCAP will test for Lane Support Systems that not
only provide a warning but also can prevent the truck from
unintentionally leaving the lane via active steering.
New tests for a Truck Safe rating scheme aim to emulate real-world collisions and
encourage OEMs to fit collision avoidance technologies and improve driver vision.
by Ryan Gehm
E
uro NCAP has revealed the elements it is considering as part of
an upcoming Truck Safe rating, and how it intends to test and
benchmark truck performance. The announcement was made to
an audience of international road safety experts at the NCAP24
World Congress in Munich, Germany, in April. The action is intended to
mitigate heavy trucks' impact on road safety. The organization cited
data showing that trucks are involved in almost 15% of all EU road fatalities
but represent only 3% of vehicles on Europe's roads.
Euro NCAP says the future rating scheme is designed to go further
and faster than current EU truck safety regulations. The organization's
goal is to drive innovation and hasten the adoption of advanced driverassistance
systems (ADAS) such as automatic emergency braking
(AEB) and lane support systems (LSS), while balancing the needs of
the different commercial-vehicle sectors across Europe.
" [This] marks a significant moment in the development of Euro
NCAP's Truck Safe rating scheme, " Michiel van Ratingen, secretary
general Euro NCAP, said at NCAP24. " Euro NCAP highlights the need
for trucks to be better equipped with life-saving technologies, particularly
related to crash avoidance, vision and aspects of post-crash
rescue. The protocols announced [in Munich] that will be formally
published [in May 2024] demonstrate that best-practice test methods
developed over the last decade for passenger cars can be turned
into useful guidelines for the design of future, safer heavy trucks. "
The new rating builds on Euro NCAP's Light Commercial Van safety
scheme. All protocols and requirements are being developed in
collaboration with Euro NCAP members, test facilities and reviewed
with manufacturers.
The organization decided to publicly present the procedures and
requirements ahead of the rating to encourage the industry to take
18 August 2024
note and react accordingly, van Ratingen said. Major
suppliers and vehicle manufacturers demonstrated
their latest advanced safety technologies at NCAP24,
including DAF, Scania, Volvo and ZF.
" Over the past 12 months, we have worked closely
with vehicle manufacturers to develop the tests, and
consulted with different stakeholders across Europe,
including distributors, haulers, insurers, city authorities,
legislators and strategic road organizations to fully understand
the complexities of making trucks and roads
safer, " Matthew Avery, director of strategy development
at Euro NCAP, said in a statement. " The future Truck
Safe rating will incentivize good safety performance in
both cities and highways and allow optimization of operational
safety and cost. Our aim is to progress towards
best practice in all types of vehicle safety, rather
than just meeting minimum standards. "
Tests emulate the real world
Truck accidents vary depending on the road environment
(city or highway) as well as the collision partner (passenger
car or vulnerable road user). Accidents between trucks
and vulnerable road users (VRUs) currently account for
25% of all EU fatalities, according to Euro NCAP. The new
tests aim to emulate real-world collisions and encourage
manufacturers to fit collision avoidance technologies and
improve driver vision. Euro NCAP says it will expand the
program in the future to include crash protection as well.
TRUCK & OFF-HIGHWAY ENGINEERING
EURO NCAP
Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - August 2024

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