News agencies have reported that autonomous, driver-less trucks will be on Florida roads before 2016. According to news reports, these will be the first self-driving trucks to see wide-spread use on US highways. The trucks will be equipment with sensors, lights, and read-end crash barriers. The vehicles will follow a lead car and use GPS waypoints.
It all means you likely won’t see a truck without anyone driving it navigating the roads alone. Instead, what you’ll likely see is a crash truck working alongside a construction crew. One truck will be operated by a professional truck driver and the rest of the trucks will follow in line. These trucks will have clear signs to help alert you. The highly visible trucks are known as crash trucks and they help protect highway crews from pedestrian accidents.
How Will the Trucks be Used?
The trucks will be used in the construction industry to protect workers. Currently, workers who are inspecting infrastructure, laying down roads, painting road markings, and performing other jobs on highways and roads are in danger. Some motorists do not slow down or stay alert when passing by workers or when driving through construction zones. Each year, this leads to serious construction site accidents on Hollywood roadways. The new trucks will have cushions that protect workers and will, according to experts, save lives.
The new driverless trucks will be used at highway construction sites under the transportation demonstration program created by the Florida Department of Transportation. Non-autonomous crash trucks have been used for more than thirty years to help reduce work zone and rear-end accidents. It’s hoped that the new autonomous crash trucks will offer a higher level of safety and will protect workers.
The Future of Driverless Trucks
Many companies – including Daimler, Google, and more – are working on developing driverless trucks and cars. There’s even a driverless train in the works. This year, Daimler announced progress on its line of driverless tractor-trailers. While these trucks may help reduce trucking collisions, reduce transportation costs, and resolve driver shortages, driverless tractor-trailers likely won’t make their way to US roads for a few years yet.
Most safety experts agree that driverless trucks are safer than trucks driven by human drivers, in part because sensors on autonomous trucks can predict crashes and act to prevent them – even in cases where those crashes are caused by other drivers.
Have you been injured by a trucking accident? Are you a construction worker injured on the job by a reckless driver? If you have been injured and would like to talk about your legal options, contact Flaxman Law Group for a free case evaluation. Our full-service law firm has a network of investigators, attorneys, paralegals, medical experts, engineers, and other experts who can build strong cases. Our legal team has more than sixty years of combined experience. Contact us today to find out what options may be possible in your case.