Transport Research Laboratory

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The Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) is a transportation consultancy, established in 1933 by the UK Government as the Road Research Laboratory (RRL). It developed considerable expertise across a wide range of vehicle and infrastructure issues. Over more than seventy years, it has had a considerable influence on the design and operation of roads and vehicles in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.

In 1996 as part of the then-Government’s privatisation policy, TRL became a fully independent company able to develop a global commercial business. Today, TRL works across the spectrum of transport and vehicle sectors with both public sector and commercial customers.

To maintain its impartiality, TRL is owned by the Transport Research Foundation (TRF), a non-profit distributing foundation overseen by 80 sector members from the transport industry. Profits from TRL are invested in its own research programmes selected by the TRF to enhance knowledge in critical areas such as safety, environmental impact and sustainable development.

TRL has many research projects in progress including new ways of spotting road edge deterioration to increase the life of roads, and exploring how ESP will impact the way road accidents are investigated. Previous self-funded programmes have included a computer model of the heart to provide insight into how it behaves in high deceleration impacts, such as those found in motorsport and high-speed highway accidents. It has also developed tools that are now helping to provide a more detailed insight into vehicle occupant kinematics.

The latest stage in TRL’s development is the opening of a new £40 million Research Centre at its high-security technical facility in Crowthorne, UK. It combines many of the facilities previously distributed across the site, together with new facilities.