Cooperative systems allow such things as platooning where trucks follow close behind each other to reduce fuel consumption. This can be further developed into a “train" that only has one driver. However, the concept is not new but is one where research has been going on since the 1960s, Kristoffer tells us.  So why haven´t we come further than this? According to Kristoffer safety aspects are holding up implementation. Who will be responsible in the event of an accident if drivers are not present in every vehicle. And things are even more difficult in Europe with so many nation states that all have different legislation.

So what exactly is it driving the development of cooperative systems? Above all three aspects, according to Cristofer:

- ENVIRONMENT/EFFICIENCY
- COMFORT
- SAFETY

But despite the increasing interest, implementation is sluggish. Some countries have come quite a long way, and Kristoffer mentions Nevada that allows tests with driverless vehicles on its roads. But technological advances are leaving legislation behind according to Kristoffer. “For example, the Vienna Convention from 1968 states that each vehicle must have a driver who is able to control it in all circumstances."

Cristofer thinks that the dream would be the development of autonomous vehicles that organize themselves and form up into platoons. There is a great deal of evidence that points to technological advances having overtaken a vision of platooning that has been around for 50 years. Furthermore, work is proceeding within standardizations to find common methods of communication between the various units in traffic. Even though we have yet to see fully autonomous vehicles reach the commercial market, 50 years of research have laid the foundations that would actually allow us to implement it today. The Viktoria Institute continues its research and hopefully it will not take decades before the research is commercialized.