COLUMBUS, OH – Looking to capitalize on emerging technologies, Governor John Kasich announced the beginning of autonomous truck testing on public roads in Ohio this Monday. The self-driving truck maker Otto, recently purchased by Uber, will begin running two test routes throughout the Buckeye state this week.
Ohio officials, including Governor Kasich, have expressed a desire to be on the pioneering front of self-driving technology, according to ABC News. The news source noted that Ohio officials believe the state’s seasonal weather changes and range of driving conditions, as well as its automotive companies and their partnerships with research universities, make Ohio a logical choice for autonomous vehicle researchers.
"Certainly we think it's going to be one of the foremost automotive research corridors in the world," said Department of Transportation Press Secretary Matt Bruning, while also noting that “safety is obviously number one.”
This October, Otto made an automated, one-time delivery of Anheuser-Busch beer. The truck drove 120 miles to deliver the first shipment ever made by self-driving truck, though the vehicle had a driver on board for oversight.
Testing in Ohio will be ongoing. Otto’s self-driving truck will travel two routes, only one of which has been made public—a 35-mile stretch of U.S. Route 33 between Dublin and East Liberty, the site of the independent Transportation Research Center. As a precaution, a human driver will accompany the vehicle on the four-lane, divided highway.
The second, as-yet-undisclosed route will be along the Ohio Turnpike, according to Bruning, a busy 241-mile toll road and thoroughfare between Chicago and the East Coast.
We had previously reported on Uber's entry into the logistics industry, here, and on the possibilities of driverless trucks in logistics in general, here.
How much longer until automated deliveries become just another aspect of our industry? For more on innovations in logistics technology as they occur, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
