In a move to simplify international transport, UNECE has introduced technical standards to support the creation and exchange of electronic consignment notes (e-CMR) for the transport of goods by road.
Supported by IRU, the development of the new standards is an important step towards seamless data sharing.
Currently, a transport operator may be forced to use different e-CMR services with varying standards to cooperate with different shippers. This situation limits the industry’s capacity to take advantage of new technologies.
Interoperability and standardisation of data between different e-CMR services will simplify the service for transport operators, shippers and relevant authorities and any other sector involved in road transport.
The project is also in line with IRU’s position on Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). According to Zeljko Jeftic, IRU Global Innovation, “This latest achievement has brought us one step closer to reaching full interoperability, which is essential to wide scale uptake of e-CMR.”
Rules for transporting goods internationally by road are covered by the United Nations Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road, known as the CMR, which has 55 Contracting Parties in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, and Central Asia.