While it seems pretty certain that some forms of autonomous trucking are definitely on the way, the vision varies on just what that’s going to look like and how fast it’s going to get here. That was the takeaway from a panel discussion on platooning and autonomous vehicle technologies at the American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition.
The NTSB determined that a fatigued and meth-impaired truck driver slow down for traffic in a Tennessee work zone, starting a multi-vehicle crash that killed six people and injured four.
Three DOT agencies and the National Safety Council have teamed up to launch a new initiative with the goal of eliminating traffic deaths on U.S. roads within the next 30 years, and truck safety is one of the targeted areas of the effort.
The president and CEO of the American Trucking Associations has bluntly assessed as “dangerous” the key provisions of the proposed federal speed-limiter rule for heavy-duty commercial vehicles.
In a fast-paced and wide-ranging address, new American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear introduced himself to ATA members and asserted that under his stewardship, the industry’s biggest lobby will “get in the game” to advance an array of trucking’s interests in Washington D.C. and on the state level.