As a licensed commercial driver, HDT senior editor Jack Roberts often reports on ground-breaking technical developments and trends in an industry being transformed by technology. With more than two decades covering trucking, in Truck Tech he offers his insights on everything from the latest equipment, systems and components, to telematics and autonomous vehicle technologies.
Technical complexities, combined with the cost of acquiring tooling and a shortage of technicians, are driving more fleets to look outside their own shops to maximize uptime.
When Fresh Freight, a refrigerated fleet servicing the West Coast, decided to buy its own trucks, it went for a premium spec right out of the box. And the move has paid off.
Peterbilt has unveiled its first major upgrade to the Model 579 highway tractor since its launch in 2012. Senior Editor Jack Roberts visited Peterbilt's Denton, Texas, manufacturing plant, took a New Model 579 test drive and attended the virtual launch of the new truck. Here's what he saw.
The New Model 579 truck is the first major upgrade by Peterbilt since the Model 579 first debuted in 2012.
Peterbilt’s latest iteration of its Model 579 highway tractor isn’t just an upgrade. It may be one of the most important trucks Peterbilt has ever built. Jack Roberts got to drive one before it was officially unveiled.
2021 marks the 100th year of Autocar making purpose-built vocational trucks. Check out this photo gallery to see Autocar trucks through the decades.
The Virginia Port Authority has received a federal grant that will allow it to begin evaluating the potential benefits of autonomous truck use for intermodal port operations.
Lots of new partners and high-dollar investments indicate autonomous truck research and development is entering a new phase.
What did trucking fleets learn from the COVID-19 pandemic that you can apply to managing the next crisis?
Kenworth and Peterbilt took their zero-emission trucks to Pike's Peak to see how well these emerging powertrain technologies could handle one of the toughest road courses on the planet.
Kodiak Robotics is now making 200-plus-mile “disengagement-free” autonomous freight runs with a tractor-trailer equipped with its autonomous driving technology.
A challenging year is behind us, with change on the horizon.
A truck designed from the ground up with only minimal considerations for human passengers would be a radically different vehicle from the ones on the road today.
Trucking Moves America Forward saluted individuals and fleets in the U.S. trucking industry that donated time, money and expertise to help the country during one of the most difficult years in recent memory.
With a bit of fine-tuning, automated manual transmissions have transformed one Oregon paving fleet’s trucking operations.