Self-Driving Lorries Might Come Before Trucks

Trucks are an easy opportunity for driverless due to fleet purchases, labor savings, and non-stop time on the road without having to stop at Flying J or another truck stop to go the bathroom, shower, and eat. And it is not only fleets of large tractor-trailer trucks that will go without human operation, autonomous vans and small trucks will transform deliveries. 

Wording: self-driving lorries may come before trucks

In the UK, concepts of quick-and-easy-to-assemble driverless delivery vans are being presented now. Charge, an automotive technology company, this week unveiled a truck that can be assembled in four hours. Charge plans to sell these vans at prices competitive with conventional, driver-operated, vans. Plus, less power of whatever type will be needed because the various sizes of these small lorries - translation: trucks - will be made of light, composite materials. I will ask the materials scientist in the family for an explanation (though sometimes this person finds it difficult to dumb down on the technical stuff).

The UK is fertile ground with the government declaration of intent to lead the self-driving race and have driverless vehicles on roads in 2020. Planting itself on Britain's fertile self-driving ground, Charge intends to have the vehicles ready for sale next year after driving legislation passes.

Deliveries without humans will mean no tips and no conversation. In my case, no "have a safe night and thank you."

Matching insurance

To go with the new driverless vehicles in the UK will be insurance for driverless vehicles. Adrian Flux is first with insurance policies for sale to the public for autonomous cars. Don't get too excited, the company envisions this product more as a conversation starter than as an immediate money maker.

Turtle-like regulatory environment across the pond

With the regulatory debates and polarized politics in the US, it is probable Americans will wait longer to buy or get shared use driverless as soon as the British, Singaporeans, or even the Japanese. In fact, the recent NHTSA letter prior to the impending sale of the Comma.ai after-market, partially driverless system possibly demonstrates an unwillingness to entertain anything other than sale of an entire car by a car company. NHSTA did not even give Hotz's company wiggle room or a roadmap to demonstrate safety. It's an odd episode because not one Tesla has been ordered off the road.

Michigan is pushing for itself to be in the forefront of driverless development and eventual sales, but to accomplish that, at the very least, the state will need a friendly federal regulatory and legal environment. One thing is for certain, New York will not be the first state to get driverless vehicles on its roads and the question is which will come first for the Empire State, Uber in Upstate New York or autonomous vehicles. The state has not yet passed a law allowing testing or actual driverless travel on its roads.

Well, perhaps driverless vehicles will be late to the US and we will get flying robo-taxis from Airbus instead. The company is shooting for testing to begin in 2017. That would require a whole different set of regulations, presumably, and the involvement of the US Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees air travel and safety.