It’s not just the trucking industry that seems divided on the topic of autonomous vehicles – the general public is split on how they feel about driverless cars and trucks out on the roadways. Truck and car manufacturers alike are already putting serious time and money into developing driverless technologies and pushing federal legislators to keep up with the times. It seems autonomous vehicle supporters may get their wish as the Department of Transportation has just announced a policy for regulating the safe testing and deployment of existing and new self-driving technologies.
According to the DOT, the new policy is not seeking to set specific rules that will govern and regulate autonomous vehicles for all time. Instead, the DOT recognizes that, as it says, “the rise of new technology is inevitable,” and that it may not make sense to over-regulate something that we do not yet fully understand right out of the gate.
“We do not intend to write the final word on highly automated vehicles here,” states the Federal Automated Vehicles Policy. “Rather, we intend to establish a foundation and a framework upon which future Agency action will occur.”
The framework essentially puts in place a few key guidelines including a 15-point safety assessment for autonomous vehicles to make sure that manufacturers and developers can safely design, develop, test, and deploy autonomous vehicles. The safety assessment sets guidelines and goals for how an autonomous vehicle should respond to certain situations, how it records data, and much more.
The motivation for the DOT is simple: as Mark Rosekind, administrator of the NHTSA pointed out, 94% of crashes on U.S. roadways are caused by human choice or error.
“Automated vehicles have the potential to save thousands of lives, driving the single biggest leap in road safety that our country has ever taken,” said DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx. “This policy is an unprecedented step by the federal government to harness the benefits of transformative technology by providing a framework for how to do it safely.”
Foxx went on to acknowledge that there are those who are uneasy with the idea of autonomous vehicles, but likened the resistance to the public’s outcry against seat belt and air bag regulation – policies which have saved countless lives.
Some autonomous vehicle critics see the new policy as a much-needed regulatory step to make sure new technology is being developed safely. Others meanwhile, like the National Safety Council, warn that unless the government does more to exert strong oversight, consumers could find themselves being treated as “human guinea pigs.”
Source: gobytrucknews, fleetowner, fleetowner, overdrive, wired, DOT, DOT, vox
Does anybody really want this tech? I drive because I enjoy it. I dont think many people will even buy cars if they cant drive them. Is it going to be soon before they pass a law that says I’m not allowed to drive anything at all at any time?
Remember when Henry Ford gave all his workers raises so SOMEBODY could afford
to buy his cars? Those days are “Gone with the Wind”.
Driverless trucks?
How about customerless products? See how that works out for you.
Yep!!!!!
Exactly correct, no jobs, no mo ey, no customers, no products. But this is what the Global Elite want, correct? Depopulation! See it coming. Do you?
They don’t want to regulate things they don’t fully understand. Wed have a lot less problems if they had adopted that stance already. They are already heavily regulating things they don’t understand. One thing they don’t understand is just how unreliable basic but necessary technologies are. Like radars…crash mitigation systems as they call them. They are going to be an integral part of any driverless vehicle. I’ve been using various radar systems for 15 years or so, starting with an Eaton-Vorad system in an early FL Century tractor. Have used several others up to now a Meritor-Wabco system in a Cascadia. Have had them in Peterbilts, Volvo, Kenworth, and Freightliner. The new systems are not one bit better engineered than the first ones I used. All have been drastically flawed in numerous ways. Until they get that rudimentary technology developed, we won’t be seeing driverless cars and trucks. And at the rate they are going, it’ll be decades away at best. And if a vehicle doesn’t need a driver, why does it need a road? I’ve read they will need dedicated lanes, and heated roadways so they won’t have to negotiate slick spots. Human drivers could be as safe as a robot driver if we had dedicated lanes that never get slick, and never had an interaction with other vehicles. If they have to build all that infrastructure to do this, why not just build freight and passenger pods that run on elevated light rail systems. Probably be safer, easier, faster, and cheaper. The rails do the steering. Just like a train, all ya gotta worry about is faster/slower.
Because they don’t care about American jobs! They are out to eliminate us by replacing us with cyborgs and start the Depopulation process of elimination of mankind. Get ready!
When one of these Cyborg Trucks runs over a bunch of people and kill them, who takes the liability??? Answer; Not the Trucker:)
They will still find a way to place the blame on truckers.
It is painfully obvious that the corporate regime runs America…..So instead of programming cellphones to be disabled from text while in motion,”Which is the major contributor to the spike in vehicle accidents for car/car and car/truck accidents…….these folks rather put a driverless vehicle on the road …..Really,…..Really……Once again , Big Business Overrides safety and common sense.
Yep they’re so smart aren’t they.
Autonomous does not mean driverless.
Let’s put robots in the white house, replace all the political people save the tax payers billions, robots are smarter than the political parties anyway
Robots in charge of the legislative bodies sounds like a good idea however, corporate America would still have them programmed to suit their desires.
Agree totally.
This is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard in my life. So, you want to put a computer on the road in an 80k pound vehicle, and that’s supposed to be safe? Really?
So, the computer freezes, reboots itself while in motion, and this computer will know what to do next, correct? Give me a break!!!
Autonomous vehicles will still need a driver, this doesn’t put any truckers out of a job, just makes the job easier.
Easier means less pay. But please go ahead and be the champion for automated minimum wage drivers.
LOL … yea. After all, someone will still have to fuel, clean windows, open trailer doors, hook and unhook, throw chains, etc…. etc …. in other words, all the work and none of the fun. No thanks, you can have that.
Here come a DOT inspection computer don’t see the scale is open, if it sees it than he has no clue what is happening this is a driverless guizmo and so what happen then who will do about instructions given by the DOT inspector????
This is a big dream and if it happen who will be gaining into this non sense.
My best guess DOT officer will be put out of business and replaced by cyber inspectors to talk with cyber drivers.
Good luck with the scam.
I doubt you will need to worry about the DOT, they will have an access code that will override any computer operated vehicle and many others also, that will stop that truck in normal circumstances.. That’s what they are after. Vehicle control..
This move to Autonomus Vehicles isn’t confined to the USA . It is happening Worldwide,and so far the results are vastly in favour of self driving Technology. There will come a Day when they Will be the norm not the exception.
I just lost my job as a company driver because I had one to many miner backing accidents in yards/DCs in a 12 month period. All the tractors I drove had automated breaks, following distance prevention etc. None of these “safety” devices prevented any of these trivial incidents nor did they warn me of any impending danger.
I’d be willing to bet that 99% of “all” truck accidents are these very low speed fender-benders. Although I’d also bet that pritty much “all” of these types of incidents have no injuries, what’s to say that a cybercrime attack or a computer that is malfunctioning or poorly maintained won’t run someone over or cause a lager accident with other vehicles/objects?
I just don’t think we’re there yet, as many times as my on-guard breaking sensors were triggered by reflective signs on a overpass or by a vehicle in the lane next to me, I can’t say it “works” 100% correctly 100% of the time.
I’m not bashing the idea or the continued development of it, I just know what I have experienced myself.
Standard government logic. It reads as though there will be no one in the vehicles as they go down the road, though in actuality, truckers will still be behind the wheel, they just won’t be called “drivers” anymore, but rather something like “truck managers” or “Linehaul Pilots” Someone would still need to be there to take the wheel if abnormal weather, construction or nightfall occurs. They have basically automated the takeoff and landing of commercial airline planes decades ago, yet still require a human pilot behind the wheel. (Same thing with train conductors) Someone still needs to do a visual Pre-trip inspection on these vehicles.
Plus I really wouldn’t mind the truck driving the point A to point B anyway. Would be really handy in rush hours in big cities, if it doesn’t kick over to manual mode.
Wont be as many clown truck drivers trying to solve every problem at the petros all u can eat buffet
Werner started e logs in 1993 and it is still not mandatory I just don’t see these super trucks on the road anytime soon. Thanks
The only thing that bugs me is, that when faced with a no-win situation, the computers decide who lives or dies.
There are 1,000,000+ accidents with injuries each year, 30,000 deaths, almost all due to driver error. Human’s can see in one direction, and take close to a second to react, even longer if they are drunk, texting, or holding the phone to their ear. A computer can look at 360 degrees all at once, without distraction, and react in a few milliseconds (1/1000 of a second).
The Google autonomous car was in 13 accidents, over 1,500,000 miles, before it had caused an accident. The other 12 were the other driver’s fault. The Google car sideswiped a bus, because there were sandbags in the road, and the computer assumed that the bus driver would slow down to allow it to merge, he didn’t. Not only are autonomous cars coming, eventually all vehicles on the road will be required to be autonomous, including classic collector cars, because humans are just too dangerous.
I was shocked the first time I saw the video of the google car negotiate a construction zone. But it may take a while before they can program the car to handle really adverse weather conditions, instead of just pulling over… maybe.
Machines have been taking more and more human jobs ever since the Industrial Revolution. Eventually computers will process information as fast as the human brain (yes, calculators work faster, but processing all 5 senses, and responding to our environment takes a lot of processing power). Computers will eventually program themselves, and design machines that can do everything a human can do. Once that happens, the era of trade of labor and creativity, for monetary reward, will be over.
Take away Trucking jobs and take away large percentage of middle class workers and economy will suffer big time and not enough jobs for these truckers to find work elsewhere period! Just so big corporate can save mote money. But then who’s going to buy if your products if we are all jobless? This is what they want isn’t it? Broke and poor! Depopulation! Globalism ! New World Order! Americas end!
People are creatures of habit. If the autodriving vehicle appears we’ll have people getting used to it and getting in the habit of not paying attention to the road, then when conditions get impossible for the computer, (what computer will see a spot of ice on the road ahead, break and steer accordingly to avoid slipping?) the driver will not be so well conditioned. As it is drivers are constantly subjected to the necessity of constant attention, being forced to maintain the habit of it to avoid accident. No matter what the technology level I will never be comfortable with allowing a computer to drive a vehicle I’m riding in, nor interact with vehicles on the road when a computer is in control of them. Man cannot create a computer that is as good as our own built in computer.
Aren’t there enough loads on the trains without drivers? Geesh…enuff already! Haven’t they learned anything from the last fatality with this driverless truck?
Last month I purchased a 2017 suv. Car has all the bells and whistles, including adaptive cruise control. At first I thought it was a pretty cool feature, as it maintains a set distance between you and the vehicle in front. Problem is, when the car starts slowing down, the tailgater behind me almost rear ends me. I have a feeling it doesn’t illuminate the brake lamps. Definitely doesn’t make me feel any safer, so I usually don’t use it. Just another step towards autonomous driving vehicles.
At first I thought automated trucks were not a sane idea but hear me out.
If the Eisenhower interstate were only for automated vehicles and for professional commercial drivers then leisure travel entertainment vehicles could be limited to secondary highways and other state routes. This would necessarily cause a need to overdevelop secondary highways to match the quality of the “old interstate” in order to reduce and prevent the endless head on collisions that would otherwise occur.
Money would be driven “literally” back into cash starved off the interstate areas causing them to have vibrant economies once again .
The number of direct and supporting jobs that could be created would number in the millions ,eliminating our immigration problem. Then ,the only problem would be getting enough immigrants to fill the excess positions.
The taxes that would result from having a second chapter opened on the Eisenhower interstate would dramatically reduce our deficit.
This country has been paying it’s “credit cards” with “credit cards” for far too long.
The money to get the ball rolling on all this is hidden in the debt itself in the form of money the United states owes to itself.
This strategy would work and only causes a minor inconvenience to smaller vehicles for a short period of time.
Cities could be places that are treated like “ports” where everything mixes it up with everything.
Sure, trains and rail development would be cheaper but it wouldn’t create the massive number of jobs that highway development will.
Someday, we will be able to hang our economy on the stars but that day isn’t yet.