Navteq offers truck sat-nay
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Truck drivers and owners of low bridges will both be pleased at the launch of the first truck-specific sat-nay. Chris Tindall reports.
NAVTEQ HAS developed a specialist UK satellite navigation system for the haulage industry, called Navteq Transport. it is designed to reduce the number of LGVs taking inappropriate routes and becoming wedged under bridges or stranded in fields.
Navteq says its database takes into account low bridges, width and height restrictions, LGV speed limits and recommended truck routes. The system also includes warnings of steep hills, sharp bends and areas with high lateral winds or the risk of grounding.
Marketing director Peter Beaumont says it will improve drivers' efficiency and ability to plan routes, saving miles driven and vehicle wear and tear. But he stresses that no system can eradicate all cases of red-faced drivers getting stranded. "It will help; it acts as an aid," he says.
"Certainly it will be the first truly international database that exists to allow large vehicles to create routes and navigation taking into account low bridges, width and other restrictions.
But he concludes: "It's still the responsibility of someone driving to make sure the road ahead is suitable to drive down.
Navteq Transport is already available in Germany and France; it will be launched in Benelux shortly. Updates will become available every three months.