FedEx, in partnership with Aurora Innovation Inc. and Paccar Inc., launched a commercial pilot of autonomous trucking between Dallas and Houston, a 500-mile round trip, along the I-45 corridor.
“This is an exciting, industry-first collaboration that will work toward enhancing the logistics industry through safer, more efficient transportation of goods and we are pleased to collaborate with other industry leaders – Aurora and Paccar – on this endeavor,” said Rebecca Yeung, vice president of advanced technology and innovation at FedEx Corp.
The company said autonomous trucking is one tool to safely and efficiently deal with “the exponential growth of e-commerce.” Although the truck will be driving itself, the test program will have a safety driver in the cab, ready to take over operations if needed.
As more carriers explore this technology, the American Trucking Associations and others are pushing the federal government to develop guidelines to allow for autonomous trucking. ATA even encouraged Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to move forward with implementing a national framework for the development and deployment of automated vehicles.
“ATA believes there is great promise in automated vehicle technology to improve highway safety, the efficiency of our supply chain and our environment,” President Chris Spear said. “But we need a national framework that fosters innovation, not a patchwork of potentially conflicting state and federal regulations, to deliver on that promise.”
