A simulation study of the cost and efficiency of 90 + ton trucks in Sweden : Examining potential and barriers within the forestindustry in Sweden, in regards to heavy trucks

This thesis had the goal to investigate the potential of 90+ ton trucks in Sweden. As of current, the highest allowed weight on public roads is 74 ton. A few research questions were formulatedin order to capture the most important aspects of the system in which these vehicles operate. The research questions were what the potential economic savings could be, what the environmental improvements could be, where these vehicles best operate and which barriersthat exist for these vehicles to be successfully deployed. The method has consisted of a literature study, interviews with experts and building asimulation model to see if the efficiency observed in some cases would be applicable to other cases as well. The results from the simulations show the same positive trend toward bigger trucks even withmore and longer routes driven. This was the case even when prices for fuel were set to different values in order to see its effect on the relation between the compared trucks. It was also shown that the heaviest vehicle, 98 tons, still would be more effective if its cargo weight was reduced by 10%. The conclusions from the study is that the BK4 road network that exists in Sweden need to be expanded as well as bridges in the network being analyzed and reinforced to handle proposed gross weights in the future. For the 90+ ton trucks themselves, rigid flows of biomass like int hose cases where terminal driving occurs are the most suitable cases for the trucks due to the predictability of the high biomass flow.