Volvo Trucks’ November deliveries increased 45% year-on-year to 11,349 trucks. In total, deliveries in Europe amounted to 4,418 trucks in November, up 35% compared with the corresponding period of 2010. Delivery increases were noted in such countries as the United Kingdom, France and Sweden.

Technological advances have now made it possible for a vehicle to run without a driver, but is a driverless future actually desirable ? Volvo Trucks says that making vehicles more autonomous is perhaps not a question of excluding drivers, but rather of emphasising their importance.

More than 20 per cent of all accidents involving trucks take place in traffic queues or similar situations. That is why Volvo Trucks has developed a system called Automated Queue Assistance (AQuA) which helps the driver in slow-moving queues by taking control of the vehicle. The system is being demonstrated between June 21st-22nd during at the HAVEit Final Event in Gothenburg, Sweden.

From 7th-9th June, Volvo Trucks have been taking part in the NGV Berlin 2011 Fair in order to present the Volvo FM Methane-Diesel. The participation in this show is also part of Volvo Trucks commitment to establish ‘blue corridors’ in Europe. These transport corridors are designed to increase the availability of gas on European roads to make it possible to cover longer transport distances with gas-powered trucks.

As a result of the strong demand for I-Shift – Volvo’s innovative mechanical transmission with automated gearchanging function – Volvo Trucks today announced that the company will start assembly of I-Shift gearboxes in its production plant in the USA starting in the third quarter of 2012.

It is possible to achieve major environmental improvements. This is the conclusion drawn following the challenge that Volvo Trucks had earlier issued, namely ‘To cut its transport-related emissions from their transport operations by 20% before the end of 2010.’

Before Volvo Trucks releases any new model on to the market, the vehicle always undergoes a rigorous crash-test programme. The Volvo FE Hybrid is no exception, but with its 578 kg battery pack, it presents the crash-test engineers with new challenges.

Volvo Trucks is continuously working to improve the quality and efficiency of their aftermarket services. One method that is currently being tested is the use of smartphones - a new consumer-based technology - in their workshops.

Volvo has developed a system that aims at solving the problem of the truck driver’s blind spot on the passenger side and the results of the research will be demonstrated today (17th May) in the Intersafe 2 EU project in Wolfsburg, Germany.