The company plans to launch its autonomous commercial trucking business by the end of 2023.
Aurora Innovation Inc on Wednesday announced that it has launched a pilot program with Uber Technologies Inc’s freight unit to transport cargo to Texas and integrate autonomous trucking into Uber Freight’s shipping platform.
Aurora said it began autonomously hauling loads for Uber Freight customers between Dallas and Houston last week. The company plans to launch its stand-alone commercial trucking business by the end of 2023, starting in Texas.
Uber is an investor in Aurora after the autonomous company bought the ATG autonomous vehicle unit from Uber last year and Uber acquired a 26% stake in Aurora.
Uber Freight is a platform that acts as an intermediary to connect shippers who need goods transported with available truck drivers, often independent contractors in a highly fragmented market.
A spokesperson for Aurora said that before last week’s launch, the company started collaborating with Uber Freight a year ago, hauling freight thousands of miles to Texas to find out more.
Uber is an investor in Aurora after self-driving company bought Uber’s autonomous vehicle unit
Aurora said carriers who subscribe to its autonomous driving product will be able to book autonomous trucks through the Uber Freight platform once autonomous commercial trucks launch in 2023.
By using autonomous trucks, carriers will be able to increase truck use and move more cargo more often between terminals, Aurora said. Human truck drivers are not allowed to drive more than 11 hours a day – restrictions that do not apply to self-driving trucks.
The pilot program deploys so-called “drop and hook” loads, an industry term that describes a driver dropping a full container into a terminal, then immediately grabbing a new one, without waiting for it to be unloaded.
Human-operated trucks booked through the Uber Freight network then travel the last mile to the actual destination, where the goods are unloaded, the companies said.
Source : The Bharat Express News
