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Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

cnn.com

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Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#41

Post by cenamus »

insane_dreamer wrote: post #37
somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

In other words, trains

Yeah, sounds almost like Musk's hare-brained plan to put self-driving teslas (driving with only a couple metres separation) in paved tunnels. I guess some people really hate sharing the bus/car/train with poor people

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#42

Post by somethoughts »

insane_dreamer wrote: post #37
somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

In other words, trains

Slight difference is that there are more lanes and there's dual usage (daytime - regular auto access, nighttime - truck train access).

The benefit is to utilize existing access rights and infrastructure.

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#43

Post by cenamus »

hbsbsbsndk wrote: post #39
lewdev wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This reminds me of how ATMs created more banking jobs because people started to use the bank more along with ATMs. ATMs handled the simple transactions and tellers dealt with the more complex tasks. We'll see. There will be a loss of little industries that depended on truckers though, like truck stops and inns. I also hope that this results in more jobs that are fulfilling.

Have you been to a bank branch recently? There is almost no staff, and to get help you have to call an offshored call center.

And there's like hardly any branches anymore, used to be one in every major village/small town per bank, now there's double the people and a third the banks

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#44

Post by somethoughts »

reaperducer wrote: post #34
somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

Put the driverless truck in their own roads and you've just reinvented the train. The only difference is how maintenance of the route is paid for.

Yes - agreed if we had dedicated truck train roads.

The proposal I would prefer is to do more of a time based multiplexing of the road between daytime auto traffic and night time truck train traffic. And I'm not saying autos couldn't drive at night, just people could decide whether they want to trust the autonomous truck software.

As it stands we probably won't get that choice and its just shoved upon us.

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#45

Post by slillibri »

somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

The problem with this is we live in a 24 hour world. When I worked 2nd shift, I got out of work at 2am so I would have to “choose not to” use the highway to get home. Also, emergency vehicles also use highways.

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#46

Post by JumpCrisscross »

EvanAnderson wrote: post #32

There's also a trial of "platooning" of driverless trucks on I-70 in Ohio and Indiana: https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardbishop1/2025/04/24/ease-... A "drivered" lead truck is leading one or more driverless trucks in this case. I drive the stretch of highway these trucks are on fairly regularly. I don't know that I've seen a group of them yet but I'm keeping my eye out. I'm probably just showing my age, but I like…

> A "drivered" lead truck is leading one or more driverless trucks in this case

My bet is this goes nowhere. It’s a horseless carriage that doesn’t have enough time to pay itself back versus fully-automated platoons with remote back-up.

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#47

Post by somethoughts »

cenamus wrote: post #41
insane_dreamer wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In other words, trains

Yeah, sounds almost like Musk's hare-brained plan to put self-driving teslas (driving with only a couple metres separation) in paved tunnels. I guess some people really hate sharing the bus/car/train with poor people

Quite the opposite - right now (or at least in the future unless interventions are added) poor people have no option but to submit themselves to driving sandwiched amongst with 10 ton trucks driven by who knows what, vibe coded, beta tested, "AI" software.

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#48

Post by JumpCrisscross »

somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

> if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time

Self-driving cars are currently proving safer than manually-piloted ones. There isn’t a good reason to segregate traffic like this.

> what would stop a few cars passage in front of the truck and helping themselves to the cargo

Why do you think a trucker would risk life or even their truck in a highway robbery?

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#49

Post by JumpCrisscross »

lenerdenator wrote: post #5

Hmmmmm. So we're going to have a lot of people potentially unemployed because of this...

“We study teamsters at the dawn of the motor truck, current occupations threatened by computerization, and truckers dreading robotic trucks. As predicted, wages in threatened occupations rise, employment falls, and the occupations become ‘grayer’. Older workers become more likely to enter and less likely to exit the occupation than young ones and sometimes even increase in number.”

https://www.aeaweb.org/conference/2025/program/paper/eT2Ar7T...

Re: Driverless semis have started running regular longhaul routes

#50

Post by somethoughts »

slillibri wrote: post #45
somethoughts wrote: post #30

I feel like the ideal scenario would be to prioritize self driving truck at set times and set long haul freeways (i.e. Long Beach to Las Vegas or Galveston to Dallas) during the night time when there is no regular auto traffic - for example from 1 am-6 am. That way if a human driver is concerned, they can choose not to drive during this period of time. Perhaps run the trucks in a train style configuration where a "co…

The problem with this is we live in a 24 hour world. When I worked 2nd shift, I got out of work at 2am so I would have to “choose not to” use the highway to get home. Also, emergency vehicles also use highways.

Agree -but the alternative is that at no point does anyone get to chose to opt out of driving amongst a sea of 10 ton self driving trucks.
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