The Loading Bay
Podcasts, videos, and articles sharing what operators and technology providers are actually doing. Implementation stories, trial results, and the lessons that don't make it into press releases.
An operator knows in a week. The money never asks.
A supplier we backed has gone into administration with the engineering working and real customers on the books. The gap isn't money. It's that the people who can tell whether the kit holds up are never in the room when the money decides.
Battery swapping for trucks: stress-testing the sceptic's case
I've always been sceptical of battery swapping for trucks. Serious money is now behind it, so I stress-tested my position. The real case isn't speed, it's grid flexibility.
Why Driverless Freight Will Scale Faster Than the Robotaxi
Almost everything written about self-driving vehicles is about cars. That's backwards. Driverless freight will scale faster than driverless passenger transport, and the reasons have almost nothing to do with the technology and almost everything to do with how the two things actually operate.
The Hydrogen Debate in Transport: A Reality Check
Hydrogen has serious credentials in steelmaking and ammonia production. But for road transport, the efficiency losses, infrastructure gap, and economic reality all point the same way. Battery-electric is already delivering. Hydrogen might find a niche, but it's not the transition.
HVO Is a Tool, Not a Transition
The carbon case for HVO is real, but only if the feedstock is genuine waste. With fraud arrests upstream and certificates from the same schemes that signed off fuel that didn't exist, operators need to treat HVO as a bridge they interrogate, not a box they tick.
Are solid-state batteries coming to save your fleet?
The engineering community has a pretty clear view on solid-state batteries. The marketing community has a different one. I went deep on the peer-reviewed literature to find out what the numbers actually say.
Full archive
Every article, episode, and video in The Loading Bay, most recent first.
- An operator knows in a week. The money never asks.Article ·
- Battery swapping for trucks: stress-testing the sceptic's caseArticle ·
- Why Driverless Freight Will Scale Faster Than the RobotaxiArticle ·
- The Hydrogen Debate in Transport: A Reality CheckArticle ·
- HVO Is a Tool, Not a TransitionArticle ·
- Are solid-state batteries coming to save your fleet?Article ·
- The Physical Internet: The Coolest Logistics Idea You've Never Heard OfArticle ·
- Would 400+ Miles of Range Change the Maths for Your Operation?Video ·
- The Bottleneck Isn't the TruckArticle ·
- The Quiet Land Grab in Logistics, and Why Independent Operators Need to Pay AttentionArticle ·
- Megawatt charging: enabling electric long-haul trucking?Article ·
- Can Drones Cut Rural Delivery Costs for Operators?Podcast ·
- An Operators Guide to Energy Markets for Electric HGV FleetsArticle ·
- The Reflexivity Problem with eHGV Residual ValuesArticle ·
- Grid Connections for Fleet Operators: Who Does WhatArticle ·
- 2025 Impact ReviewVideo ·
- Should you respond to the HGV decarbonisation consultation?Video ·
- Can data make fleet electrification easier?Podcast ·
- 12 Pillars of Change: Defining the Road Zero - Session 3Video ·
- 12 Pillars of Change: Defining the Road Zero - Session 2Video ·
- 12 Pillars of Change: Defining the Road Zero - Session 1Video ·
- Where Will Fleets Charge? BonusVideo ·
- Where Will Fleets Charge?Video ·
- What Happens When You Bet on the Future?Podcast ·
- How Quick Is an electric HGV Off the Line?Video ·
- What Does It Take to Lead the Charge?Podcast ·