Self-Driving Trucks Are Coming Sooner than You Think

We’ve all heard the hype regarding trucks that drive themselves, but most of us thought that was something for the distant future. Not so, explains the Wall Street Journal. In fact, the self-driving startup TuSimple recently raised over a billion dollars in an IPO (which comes on the heels of a U.S. investigation into the company’s ties to China), and it’s poised to kick off driverless trucks this year. If a truck accident that was caused by someone else’s negligence leaves you injured, it’s time to consult with an experienced NYC truck accident attorney.

Get Ready

TuSimple has big plans to test its self-driving trucks in Arizona later this year, and this isn’t a dress rehearsal – there will be no backup truck drivers on board (in what is known as a driver-out program). The autonomous truck’s maiden voyage will be a 100-mile run from Tucson to Phoenix. Currently, the company has a fleet of 50 rigs being tested in the American Southwest – with another 20 running in China.

IEEE Weighs In

The SPECTRUM – published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), TuSimple’s trucks are geared up for everything from pickups to deliveries without a trucker in sight. TuSimple is outpacing the grand predictions that companies like Cruise, Uber, and Tesla would be the first to get driverless cars out there, but the truck industry is ahead of the game. In its efforts to rocket forward, TuSimple has combined its proprietary innovations with well-considered partners, such as the truck manufacturer Navistar and the shipping goliath UPS, and it’s already got trucks running on supervised autonomy (with a truck driver on board, just in case) in both Texas and Arizona.

Trucks May Be Better Suited to Autonomy

Semis, in the end, may be better suited to self-driving than cars are for all of the following reasons:

• Big rigs tend to travel fixed routes that are more predictable than a car’s meanderings.
• Big rigs typically travel on highways rather than over the far-less manageable surface streets that cars frequent.
• Because the cab of a big rig sits so high off the road, it allows the sensors that work as its eyes and that guide on the road a more expansive view.

The success of driverless trucks remains to be seen, but if TuSimple can get this thing off the ground, the effects for the trucking industry are likely to be profound.

An Experienced New York City Truck Accident Attorney Can Help

If a negligent truck driver leaves you injured in a truck accident, the resourceful New York City truck accident lawyers at Lipsig, Shapey, Manus & Moverman have a wealth of impressive experience guiding complicated cases like yours toward their best possible resolutions, and we’re here to help you, too. Our compassionate legal team understands the serious nature of your situation and is committed to skillfully pursuing your just compensation. For more information about how we can help you, please give us a call at 212-285-3300 orcontact us online today.