The future of trucking? Self driving trucks?

See, that right there is the problem.
You understand it better than the big brains behind it all, but they will just keep going at it.

One thing you did not mention was the hackers.
That could be 'bad actors' using tech to disrupt the signals, or something more mundane like solar disruptions that interrupt GPS and other communications.

A couple days ago the GPS in my car went nuts. (And yes, this is really true.)
It could not figure out which direction I was traveling or what road I was on, so it kept trying to reroute me.
It cleared up after 5 miles or so.
Sunspots, solar flare, CME or a faulty satellite... would an AI 'driver' be able to deal with it?

 

I'm thinking they probably are prolonging the non Domicile cdl holders so more havoc will occur. Then they have even more leverage towards their agenda for Autonomous Trucks even faster. Back in the 90's, no one would have ever thought the Trucking Industry would be how it is now.

 

I mean, seems like it’s fairly close. If they could only figure out how to keep trucks from thinking they need to go into full panic mode just from passing a guard rail I might start to worry. Seriously what’s up with that?

 

Autonomous trucks will only be used in a point to point scenario. Terminal to terminal at, say 500 miles apart at most, depending on the fuel capacity of the truck. They won't be showing up at pickups/deliveries, nor will they be pulling into truck stops to fuel.

 

I’ve said it, my entire life, “just because you can do something doesn’t mean you always should“ this is one of those situation’s. I think what needs to happen on a broad scale regarding all this robotics and AI technology that is coming and we all know it’s coming and it’s probably going to come faster than many of you realize. But what we need to do is push our government to do the following. And it needs to be law of the land. If you want to advance all this artificial intelligence go right on ahead, that’s fine. But before you start utilizing it to wipe out employment opportunities across entire industries, you have to come up with ideas and means to replace those jobs. Otherwise your advanced technology gets to sit and wait on the sideline to be implemented. That’s my opinion so advanced technology all you want take 4 million jobs in one swipe but you better have a plan to replace those jobs with something. Just my two cents on it.

 

I doubt they'll ever do point to point trucking fully automated. Whatever they call autonomous now still has a driver. I don't think it's appreciated by many of you how complicated even just running a 100 or 500 miles point to point is. And trucks aren't like a warehouse. A warehouse is a controlled environment easily automated. The highway is dynamic ever changing. You can't even consider all the variables, computers, fake AI can't deal with it. We'll still be having this same argument 10 years from now and on and on...

 

I’ve said years ago that the LTL will be the cutoff. That LTL driver with 30 stops in hellish traffic conditions, you can’t replace him with a machine. The OTR meat in the seat Braindead driver will be the first to go. Once the steeringwheelholders and Braindeads are out of the business, the hackers and thieves will become stupid rich as stopping an autonomous truck will be extremely simple to do. The drivers, the real professionals will make bank, but the dangers of decades ago will be back.

 

More robots, less jobs, less people with money to spend, less products getting sold, less profit for companies. There will have to be universal basic income paid for by taxing the companies that made more profit by eliminating employees. So it's a fools errand. Only, if this ever happened, you have either people with alot of time to pursue their "art". Which may be painting and composing, or sitting around getting fatter and higher everyday. Just a theory. Maybe I should write a sci-fi novel based on this. Idiocracy 2.