Emerging hot spot analysis: Estimating the development in the speed of freight in a region using tracking data from logistics companies

Traditionally, focus in the transport field, both politically and scientifically, has been on private cars and public transport. Freight transport has been a neglected topic. Recent years has seen an increased focus upon congestion as a core issue across Europe, resulting in a great need for knowledge about how congestion influences freight transport. This article presents an analysis of how fast freight move in Northern Jutland Denmark and how this has developed through time, and the analysis contributes to the state of the art in two ways. First, the analysis is based on unique data, tracking data from two major Danish logistics companies, and thus tracking data from thousands of trucks. Current speed statistics in the region rely on sensor networks which cannot distinguish clearly between trucks and other vehicles, which means that there are significant uncertainties regarding the current speed data for freight. Secondly, the analytical methods used, space-time cubes and emerging hot spot analysis, are also new in the freight transport field. The analysis thus estimates precisely how fast freight moves on the roads in Northern Jutland and how this has evolved over time.