Following direction from the White House, the Department of Transportation has issued two separate Advanced Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) concerning autonomous truck regulations. The DOT is developing the new rules in order to remove regulatory roadblocks that stand in the way of the testing and mass adoption of autonomous vehicles.
Both the FMCSA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published ANPRMs on May 22nd concerning Automated Driving Systems (ADS). The FMCSA’s notice is titled “Safe Integration of Automated Driving Systems-Equipped Commercial Motor Vehicles” while the NHTSA’s notice is titled “Removing Regulatory Barriers for Vehicles with Automated Driving Systems.” While safety is discussed as a concern in the documents, they are both unabashedly pro-ADS.
According to the NHTSA, they are considering amending existing safety regulations in order to allow for self-driving trucks to operate without needing exemptions. This could mean allowing for vehicles without “conventional controls, including steering wheels and brake pedals.”
The FMCSA’s ANPRM will be seeking public input on how to overcome some of the differences between human drivers and autonomous trucks. Questions include how to require a driver to have a CDL, specific endorsements, medical certifications, etc. without excluding an ADS “driver” who has none of those things.
Under current regulations, an ADS driving a truck still needs a human driver with a license, endorsements, medical certificate, etc. to be “operating” the vehicle. But it looks like the FMCSA is looking for a way to allow ADS-driven trucks to bypass those requirements – and possibly forgo a human “driver” entirely.
Both ANPRMs are in line with direction from the White House which is hoping to stimulate economic growth by removing regulatory hurdles standing in the way of emerging vehicle technologies.
“We know that while many of these technologies are still in development, it is critical that we carefully examine how to make federal rules keep up with this advancing technology,” said FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez.
Source: freightwaves, truckinginfo, overdrive, ttnews, FMCSA, NHTSA
An idiot with two DUI’s and no truck driving experience seems like the perfect person to make this decision. Wonder how much money these tech companies have given him and Chao?
Good luck
The autonomous truck idea will never work. Either you will allow human beings to operate the trucks 100% or computers 100%. You can’t mix and match. What are you trying to do destroy the world? Are these companies so in love with money that they will destroy themselves and others? I know the answer to that question. I just wanted to put that out there.
Capitalism!
Still much better than Socialism/Communism.
Whats going on isnt capitalism in free market consumers control the market you make a good product i buy it your business in turn thrives. Im not even sure what this is every time a company screws every thing up the government steps in hands them a sack of money and tells us too big to fail. Meanwhile no changes are made and the government goes about passi g more laws to force the consumers to buy garbage we dont want. This is not capatalism this is a very misconstrued form of soacalism for wall street.
Looks like the beginning of the end for drivers. It’s gonna take a while but soon, they’re not gonna need us. If you think about it, it’s way more cost effective to have an autonomous that can run 24/7/365. No medical, no dental, no layovers, no vacations, no crying, just plug and play. We’re on our way out, maybe not now but soon. It’s a damn shame.
That is the truth of the matter
You got to be kidding This will never happen because these trucks will not be able to run in the winter!
Agreed
Just stop buying stuff what are they going to do start selling stuff to monkeys and snakes. We all have the power here. The branch will only bend so much before it snaps
I would just like to know who is going to buy their when they put everyone out of work
Close to 80% of commercial flights take-off, fly, and land automonomously, but still require a pilot to ‘supervise’. what makes you think that CMV’s should be any different?
College educated engineers hate blue collar workers and are absolutely determined to ensure we are unemployed. They have the attitude that no one should earn more than minimum wage if they have a degree and absolutely hate the fact a bunch of so called dumb men can earn just as much as them without that piece of paper.
Because there are more of them and in direct contact with the public
People used to said the same about humans flying. It will work believe me, it will. It is not about comoanies getting the money it is about corrupt people axeoting money in politics from the big companies. It is about having politicians who are more likely to favor big companies than workers interest. We need to stop corporate money in politics, we need to stop believing those who name the the ones tgat really care about us as socialist, radicals… stop believing to those who tell us we dont need to think or study to make more informed decitions. Stop believing those who said the only thing we need is healtier comoanies pockets to get back from them. Stop believing those who tell you big goverment r bad but not big corporations… at least i can vote for the goverment but i can not vote for the coorporates CEO’s….
What’s the point of self-driving trucks if there still has to be a ‘qualified’ driver in the truck? And when the self-driving truck has an accident (and you KNOW they will!), how will they charge the non-driving driver? This stuff is nuts. And, would YOU want to sit by and let some computer (which we know NEVER make any mistakes) drive while you relax and look out the windows? Not ME!
They have a driver till all the bugs are worked out, then we are all on the unemployment line
Lmfao a computer that has all the “bugs worked out” because windows is working out for us
Everything will eventually work out… there are a point not only in each and every thing said. No body will stoped from happening. That it is the future and all solutions will be found to become reality. The point it is not stoping the progress. The point is in having politicians who care about people. Politicians who will make sure that workers will have choises and decent leaving no matter what the progress will bring. It ia not socialism, it is not stalinism, it is comun sense.
They won’t need a driver in the truck.
That’s not the impression I got. The White House, specifically Donald Trump’s administration, (place the Blane where it’s dually credited) is seeking solutions to allow for the truck to operate without a driver. In the above article they said, quote “without a steering wheel or pedals”. That means no driver. I guess it’s time to start looking for something else.
Please do the industry and all drivers a favor: May the insurance companies refuse to insure these self-driving rigs. This is a recipe for disaster waiting to happen on a huge scale!
Get ready for lots of people to die with these things on the road
A lot less than with humans operating. The life savings will be millions world wide. Do the research
Just wait until the Russians or whatever country we have an issue with at the moment hacks these trucks, delays deliveries, disrupts commerce and eventually turns it into an ADS battering ram! Do the research on that – you want to compare worldwide driving fatalities to something that is just TALK!! C’mon – it’s not good, it won’t be good, it’s going to a meltdown just like most other great thoughts…
It’s coming no matter what money is all companies care about and it’s going to be a slow painful process it won’t be completely driverless for a long time but with in 2 years we will be seeing truck drivers passing us with out holding the steering wheel for sure. And some companies are going to require us to use auto pilot. I already see cars doing this it’s only a matter of time
So they relax rules of vehicles that will definitely kill people but still find more stupid regs for drivers. FMSCA leaders aren’t qualified to walk my dog let alone have such an important job. For those wondering why a driver is still needed in the trucks, read about the accidents on the auto vehicles, they always blame the driver.
Wait until a hacker breaks the signal and uses it as a guided missile.
You are certainly on the right path. An amazing analogy was on Criminal Minds show not long ago.
Thing is hackers dont draw attention or risk drawing attention to themselves without some form of payoff and that includes the exploits as well we like to fly so far the radar so we can operate in anonymity and those that would be motivated for some stupid reason are not intelligent enough to understand the networking much less how to pick the tools or even get a game plan together to do so much less bring it all together and act on it
Not much to worry about from hackers unless hackervist which they wouldebt risk human life
Criminal hackers only act to get paid and stay well clear of the light and stay in the freedom of shadows
And all the other bad guys are no threat with anything technological in sort anyone who can do is not motivated yo do so even when the white hats come out paint an exploit red no one listens and patches it
And anyone who wants to cant do nothing to fear but fear itself
No matter what you have to have a driver in the seat, so your still paying a person, and no one is going to do it for less than what we get paid now, so what is the point? If you want the truck to drive cross country in 1 shot and still pay me to back it in etc then so be it, but there better be documents that state when the vehicle is driving unmanned that the driver inside is not at fault. Money corrupts people to the point of insanity. Don’t worry guys and gals we gonna have our jobs and many many generations after will have our jobs. They can’t even make fully autonomous cars without a sustained enclosed environment.
All this being pushed, but by whom? First they shake up whole industry with the lob sided ELD mess, know they have the perfect solution to meet the market demand for driver shortages etc. I wonder what the bigger picture is, and believe you me there is a bigger picture. I would like to have team of researcher follow the money trails to see where they led.
This is going to happen, so get used to it. Truck drivers have their heads in the sand they think that the governor is going to require a human’s be behind the wheel of these things. It’ll mailing get rid of the OTR jobs, but the local jobs in the delivery jobs will remain human operated. don’t believe it? Airplanes are already computer-controlled and most landings are operated by the computer’s not the pilots.
Apples and oranges. Planes pretty much fly a straight line, can’t run off the edge of the sky, no possibility for a pedestrian, highway worker, ect to run in front of it. Controllers maintain safe separation, don’t have to worry about another plane cutting you off. Airports don’t move, approach procedures can be very complicated and they are well tested The onboard and ground based equipment are very expensive.The number of airports that can handle cat 1,2 and 3 approaches are relatively small. The two aren’t even remotely similar
Self diving trucks on flat dry ground is one thing, ice and sleet covered roads with wet brakes and steep grades another. On that note i have a question i have not seen any comments on… who is securing the loads??? The shippers??? Lol in a perfect world where all loads are lite the wind to your back smooth roads and a slight downgrade autonomous trucks would be fantastic. However on i80 through Wyoming in high winds ice covered roads and full parking lots, what does the self driving truck do? Where does it go? Does it stop and park on the road? Does it find a Walmart close by? That goes for any state.. michigan ohio new york Pennsylvania.. i get the desire to reduce costs on transport i get the safety concerns.. what i dont get is why i cant find a dash cam that will last more then 6 months or a gps thats accurate 100 percent of the time.. autonomous vehicles are a bad idea UNTIL THE TECH IS PERFECTED.. putting them on the road before then is not only more expensive but out rite dangerous. Personally i think if the government is going to lift restrictions on somthing.. how about flying cars?? Faa still requires the use tech from the 50s??? I think it is for aircraft.. which is why there have been no advances there ( military exempt ) well no advances in the use of them anyway.. if electronics are so trust worthy, why can i not get a flying car????????????????????? Thank you
What company did you start at? Schneider had “custom routes” put in by some tech team that was essentially 100% accurate. Do things by hand and they tend to work a lot better…. Most truck drivers voted for Trump because he was gonna help us, that just worked out fantastically. The Walmarts and Amazon’s have to keep improving their bottom line and at some point the only way is to remove jobs. Once we’re all replaced by robots they’ll move to China and repeat. Remember the scare that aliens would harvest mankind? Who knew men were the aliens?
Well if your an O/O
You should of brought more $$
Home after taxes compared to previous year, that is unless you relaxed and stayed home.
If crooked Hillary had come in
do you honestly think you would pay Less Taxes.Those 2 words are Deplorable to her.
Fact is machines have been replacing people for a long time
Was only a matter of time that it would come around to us Drivers
I am starting to look forward to my next career: Becoming a Pirate ARRRR. My target self driving trucks!!!
Awesome answer, Captain Keith! Keep me in mind when you are assembling your crew
Gonna be interesting.
Maybe they’ll all be day cabs with one seat for whatever yard jockey at either end for the yard moves.
I want to see some robot come out and do a DOT inspection and pump the fuel.
For their next trick, well see a sensor breakdown and a trailer being dragged down the road on flat tires with pieces flying off everywhere.
I wonder how the Troopers are going to get that sort of thing to stop?
They’ll just exempt the trucks from DOT inspections. Make the carrier sign some BS self certification on each truck before it leaves the yard. That’s another thing though. A lot of DOT officers going to be out of a job. Lots of cities, municipalities, state governments, county governments, etc going to loose revenue from lack of fines and etc. Lol
My first stop today I have to double through a tight employee parking lot, pull back out into a car lined street. Block both lanes and back in while not hitting improperly parked cars.
Second stop I park in the oncoming lane and open my door since I can’t do it in the dock (and no a roll up door won’t work due to product we haul). Then I block both lanes and back off the street.
Third stop is a drop n hook where you back in off the street. Then go inside and tell them to open the gate. My other trailer is dropped too high, so I dolly it down. Air pins won’t release so I drive it around and bounce it til the air will supply and I can adjust tandems to meet length laws..
I replace a leaking rubber grommet, but I don’t have to air up any flats today or adjust brakes or replace lights, reflective tape, etc. I wish they’d put an autonomous truck doing this and show me how easy it is.
For enlightenment, send DOT the info on the Tesla crashes. Autonomous vehicles are a bandaide on humanity’s lack of road courtesy and to legally hold the manufacturers free from responsibility just so carriers can push drivers out is a travesty. Toyota airbags are a prime example of the convoluted illogic of prosecuting of defective equipment, while allowing defective equipment makers a pass will only make our roads more deadly. ps: as ineffective for safety as the billboards that say “pretty please don’t text & drive”. Sure works out there alrighty. Texting is a leading factor in accidents. What we need is MORE stringent controls and cops and laws that hit people in the pocketbook. P L E A S E……………………..lmao
The solution
The only way autonomous trucks will work is by building smart roads for them.
Our infrastructure needs to be fixed.
Estimated cost 1-2 trillion dollars.
The high tech companies (Apple, Google, Microsoft , Amazon and few more) have this amount of cash in their banks.
Let them pay for fixing the roads and with the fixing let them ad a smart lane for the Autonomous vehicles.
Smart roads??? Drive through Shreveport. If they can’t afford new roads on conditionally unsafe roads, I don’t believe there will be smart roads, just loss of jobs and chaos on rough riding dumb roads.
Nobody is addressing the issue of the computer system being hacked. Can you think of a better weapon than a 40 ton truck carrying flammable poisons or other has.
Now the hazardous loads are a big deal. Explosives . I hope they realize the consequences.
Just how do they propose to have computerized trucks to handle the innumerable situations on the road ?
I say BS !
Yes there could be trucking routes, where automated trucks drive in lanes at certain speeds and get to certain lots or they will then be handled by a local drivers/ regional drivers… But all out take over my automated trucks, I don’t see any way in hell that could ! 🤷🏽♂️
without “conventional controls, including steering wheels and brake pedals.” Is the dumbest idea that I’ve heard of. Unless the vehicle is on private property shuttling a trailer from one spot to another… This idea is dangerous. Because there will always be situations where the driver will need to take control. Now if AI was to be as smart as Kitt on Knight Rider that may be a different issue but we will address that in the age of the singularity. For now, to my knowledge, these vehicles can’t safely navigate around potholes.
Lot of denial in these comments. No need to lower the age for a CDL this is the last generation of truck drivers. We are obsolete.
Ray Martinez, I don’t give a damn who you are! You are an IDIOT, if you allow these companies to put an 80,000 Pound Horizontal Building or Misslle whatever you wish to call it, on America’s Roads! We just had that one woman killed crossing the road in what Arizona? That was by a “Self Driving” Car! Now all that’s SUSPENDED!! WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU A COMPLETE MORON RAY? JUST ASKING? LOOKS TO ME, YOU ARE! ANYONE WHO WANTS A SEMI ON AMERICA’S HIGHWAYS WITHOUT A DRIVER, NEEDS TO HAVE HIS HEAD EXAMINED!!!
Perhaps by autonomous they just mean more computerized control “saftey features” we’ll have to fight to actually operate the truck.
Love the comments fellas keep on trucking……
It might come with time but for know my 3 month old freight shaker only goes under every other interstate sign or over pass without automatically slaming on the breaks.
And they won’t or can’t fix it? That’s gonna b fun this winter🙄 I gave up on cruise rpm first 2 weeks. Wouldn’t
Better trains or train tracks fix a lot of this???? At least otr.
This world is DOOMED.
No more road rage and super truckers there will always be accidents but not as many with this new technology bring it on!!!!
The lobbies for lg and other big companies just want to save some more money which is how these Bill’s have passed. The lobbies are also what is keeping trucking job pays down. This clearly shows complete disregard for public safety, autonomus cars can’t get this tech working properly and they are putting it on trucks, complete genius.
Can that ads truck back into a dock. Lump 24 pallets of can goods onto 96 pallets and shrink wrap it.. or slide the tandems, fuel up. Or even open the trailer doors. What about a flat tire. Can it trap a load of lumber.. can it doe a walk around inspection..
My truck has the fancy /highly touted ADC (adaptive cruise control/ braking system) .. This thing fails every time the cameras/ sensors get dirty due to dust, weather or bugs.. These robo trucks are definitely coming, but not without absolute carnage on our highways. It will also take years to work out the bugs and become totally immune to glitches or even hackers, we still haven’t resolved those issues since the 1980s.. Get ready for chaos on our highways
Democraps with their new green BS! Will put truck stops out of business and all their employees. Who will fuel the trucks when there’s no truck stop to get fuel? Who will change blown tires when there’s no tire services? Who will tow broken trucks when there’s no driver to report a breakdown?
I agree truckers will fight back
Trains no conductor trucks no driver drones everywhere truck mechanics will be erased. There’s already a remote controlled fork lift perhaps there won’t be a need for dock workers lots of new inventions. And they are great inventions. Take a look at the new time saving farm equipment . That too has cut down labor workers .
How will these driverless trucks operate on snow ice and getting stuck in mud or sand?
No more Ice Truckers
TRUCKERS NEED TO STRIKE! WE ALL NEED TO GET TOGETHER AND STRIKE!!! NOW!! DON’T WAIT UNTIL THE TECHNOLOGY IS ADVANCED ENOUGH TO FORCE US OUT! 5G IS COMING! SAW AN ARTICLE ON IT. WITH 5G U WILL BE ABLE TO DOWNLOAD A MOVIE IN 3 SECONDS. HUWAII IN CHINA HAS ALREADY DEVELOPED THE 5G TECHNOLOGY!! IT’S GOING TO HAPPEN. TRUCKERS NEED A SEAT AT THE BARGAINING TABLE!! TRUCKERS UNITE!!
Other drivers would rather kill me, themselves or the 4 wheelers around us than let me pass them because it says Swift on my door. United truckers? Good luck with that.
Where are the teamsters when you need them.
IN LAS VEGAS !!!!
PAID VACATION BY YOU.
These robot trucks will take a left right into the wrong lane. He’ll they bought robots tuggers for my factory and when they started running into lines full of people they parked them….company lost millions. But I think truckers will fight back and destroy these things hiding in the woods by the highway shooting them good luck with this bull crap
If safety is a priority in trucking ..1 why are drivers paid by the mile.. 2 why must they work 14 hours everyday.. 3 provide truckers a safe place to do their 10 hour breaks…
It will never work unless they make first a roadway only for these vehicles
Here’s a thought …who’s going to turn in the paperwork in at these facilities for loads and unloads who’s going to open the doors at these facilities I can tell you they’re not and most importance DOT.. who’s going to do the pre and post inspection on the trucks.. oh and here’s a real kicker for the Department of Transportation we won’t need you anymore so goodbye to your job think about it fellas.
In addition to my first comment …how in the world can anyone think this can work… How you can have a truck go up and down the road without a driver …but who’s going to secure the load I can tell you that the facilities are not going to strap down and chain a coil on a flatbed and tarp it that will never happen… and what idiot are you going to find to actually if you do put the human in the truck to be in that truck without a steering wheel or a brake pedal not enough thinking has went into this fellows.. I can assure you it won’t be me!!!!
Looks like the end is near boys, and, it could be as soon as 5 to 10 years. Within 15 years we will all be shown the door. All of us. UPS and FEDEX are already experimenting with robots and drones to make deliveries. Garbagemen will become extinct too. Ditch diggers, Steel workers, crane operators, pipe and brick layer all gone, with many more industries to follow. It’s a brave new world where blue color jobs no longer exist and no one cares what happens to them or their families. All this progress and the most vulnerable will get left behind and have dirt kicked over them as the car leaves the starting gate. It’s over Johnny. Good luck.
This is similar to the movie “I-Robot” make technology take the place of humans but it will most definitely backfire.
A high tech form of socialism/communism. Take the binders off.
What about redoing HOS you just forget about that or what . Government needs to keep their hands out of everything they don’t know shit! I wonder how many people they’re going to kill before they decide to help us owner-operators out
And what none of these idiots realize as two things 1 these autonomous trucks right that will run a cold weather why don’t the experiment with the trucks in – 20 + – 30 degrees weather there is no way these electric trucks are going to work because the batteries are going to go dead the electric components are going to freeze and the driver is going to freeze to because it’s electrical we have problems now and number two it’s going to be bad when that autonomous truck kills a family because it can’t stop anybody with common sense can see these top things ain’t going to work
Hope they figure out how to hook,and uncouple trailers autonomously , then open doors autonomously and unload and load up autonomously
Fuel up autonomously and change it’s own tires autonomously
Not going to happen anytime soon. To many safety /logistics issues . The Techies clearly have not thought this thru. May work in some limited applications , but not accross the board. No worries.
Time too start looking for a new career because in 10 years or less we will not be required.
Yet they want 18 year olds too skip college and get into trucking. Yeah makes sence😫
However if this gets rid of texting idiots and load brokers it may not be all bad, except for us😩🤭😖😂🤣
9-11 was a controlled demolition, architects for 9-11 got it right, why aren’t you people talking about it, now your going to have, auschwitz in a McDonald’s wrapper, the military industrial prison complex,now you realise why they have privatised the prisons, and now you know how they will transport you and your family, wake up, they have set you up.
We, as a country, bitch about unemployment and than every day we use self checkout and look for machines that can replace workers. Its asinine.
yeah, ask Boeing about the 737 Max and the “safety” device that cause several crashes and then tell me how you would like to ride along in a vehicle that has no brakes or steering wheel.
A real trucker loads a trailer, secures the freight, then takes it to the terminal. Then, Autonomous truck can, on interstate only, go from terminal to terminal. In good weather. Then, a real trucker will have to make final delivery. I got no problem with that. I am home every day, Mr Autonomous stays out otr. What’s the problem, guys? I haul gasoline to retail stations locally, myself. No way in Hades autonomous could do my job. Unless you only run terminal to terminal and drop and hook, it can’t do yours either. Enjoy the home DAILY in the future, be happy!