Isuzu Australia Limited (IAL) has released new independent industry research revealing evolving trends and challenges within Australia’s road transport sector.
Developed with external research specialists, The Future of Trucking Report: The Way Forward is Australia’s largest and most comprehensive survey.
The report highlights findings from more than 1300 survey respondents from transport operators, including prominent general freight and last-mile delivery fleets, through to construction, government, health, and other niche industry sectors.
IAL director Andrew Harbison explained that since the inaugural The Future of Trucking report was published in 2020, the road transport operating landscape has continued to evolve locally and globally.
“An essential goal of this year’s report was to identify and monitor emerging and entrenched trends and to look at how operators navigate these within the Australian truck industry.
“The second instalment of the study uses this critical lens to delve into these issues—with the intent of better understanding overall industry sentiment, evolving technology systems, as well as procurement and maintenance requirements.
“Our industry is on the cusp of transformation, especially concerning technological and regulatory change,” says Harbison.
“Our updated findings paint a confident picture of a strong and proactive sector ready to grapple with these challenges head-on.”
The findings
With a positive response from industry participants, The Future of Trucking (2024) report includes the following key takeaways:
Business sentiment
- The Australian truck industry is expected to evolve rapidly in the coming three years; with that growth comes tighter profit margins and rising fuel prices, which are at the top of Australian transport operators’ business and truck fleet challenges.
- The national freight task continues to grow, although growth expectations are bullish based on previous findings.
Procurement
- Across the Australian truck parc, the average tenure of new truck ownership remains at six years.
- Concurrently, the purchase preference for pre-built OEM vehicles as an alternative to custom-built trucks has increased for Australian businesses.
- The evaluation of the new truck’s ‘total cost of ownership’ continues to be the primary purchase driver over initial upfront pricing, with this approach increasing since previous findings.
Technology and safety
- Data reveals that the market continues to be motivated by increasing safety standards and bolstering safety, the number one reason for adopting new truck technology.
- In the next five years, Lane Keep Assist (LKA), Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) and Electronic Stability Control (ESC) are some of the vital safety technologies businesses are looking to adopt.
- Larger fleets and government operators are adopting active (autonomous) safety features more widely in new model trucks.
Electric vehicles
- Australian fleets have indicated a strong appetite for adopting zero tailpipe emission vehicles, though the timescale for introduction remains mixed.
- Perceptions continue to improve surrounding the current suitability of electric trucks and supporting charging infrastructure, with participants earmarking electric vehicles as a critical solution to Australia’s transport future in the next 10-15 years.
Truck maintenance
- Industry awareness and action on Chain of Responsibility (CoR) compliance remains the same as previous findings, with three out of 10 operators unaware of CoR or without policies to comply.
- Businesses preferred to complete major truck repairs at OEM dealerships (including parts and componentry), citing quality, timeliness, service, and parts availability as critical factors.
John Walker, IAL project lead for The Future of Trucking report, said these fresh findings point to the innate resilience across the sector.
“Be it regulatory, societal or technological, a key theme emerging from the report is that change within our sector is as constant as it is ongoing.
“Overwhelmingly, our latest report shows significant positivity about the overall position of the road transport sector. We trust that this ongoing research project will arm and assist strategic thinking and decision-making within our industry.”
For further information about the report, including a full report download, visit The Future of Trucking: The Way Forward at isuzu.com.au/news/future-of-trucking
