Skip to main content

Next year, convoys of self-driving trucks will be driving on U.K. roads

trucks
Andrey Pavlov/123RF
Only 30 years ago, the idea of convoys of self-driving trucks would have been a high concept horror movie setup straight out of the Stephen King playbook. Jump forward to 2017, and the U.K. government has just announced that it is greenlighting a trial of the technology on public roads. How far we’ve come!

The technology involves connecting two or more autonomous trucks together using Wi-Fi-based “vehicle-to-vehicle communication” technology so that they operate as a single unit. It’s not entirely autonomous in the sense of having no human involvement whatsoever. Instead, the lead vehicle is controlled by a human driver, with the other self-driving trucks in the convoy following behind in close pursuit. While the other trucks use autonomous technology in their driving, it is the job of the human driver at the front to control the speed and direction of all the vehicles in the convoy, with the others following his or her lead with zero reaction time.

The rationale behind it is that convoys of multiple trucks will require less space on the highway, can take advantage of the slipstreams created by the lead vehicle to reduce carbon emissions, and will help get the public used to self-driving vehicles.

The $10.5 million trial is scheduled to start sometime in 2018. Prior to that, the trucks and human drivers are being put through their paces using a combination of training courses, simulations, and test track trials.

“The U.K. has an unprecedented opportunity to lead the world in trialing connected vehicle platoons in a real-world environment,” said Rob Wallis, CEO of the Transport Research Foundation (TRL). “TRL and its consortium of leading international partners, have the practical and technical knowledge gained from previous projects to understand what is required to put a connected vehicle platoon onto U.K. roads safely. The team is now taking that expertise and uniquely applying it within live traffic operations.”

With similar tech already tested in Singapore and parts of Europe, TRL’s trials are not a world-first. However, the U.K. trial represents one more step on the road to making self-driving vehicles an everyday technology.

Editors' Recommendations

Luke Dormehl
I'm a UK-based tech writer covering Cool Tech at Digital Trends. I've also written for Fast Company, Wired, the Guardian…
Robotaxis have a passenger problem that no one thought of
gm cruise to test fully driverless cars in san francisco

An issue with self-driving cars that apparently no one previously considered has come to light: dozing passengers.

Officials in San Francisco, where Alphabet’s Waymo company and GM-backed Cruise are currently operating robotaxi services as part of ongoing trials, highlighted the problem in a recent letter to the regulator, Wired reported.

Read more
Apple’s rumored car could cost the same as a Tesla Model S
Apple Car rendering from Vanarama.

Rumors have been swirling around for years regarding Apple’s plans for an electric, self-driving car.

The latest report, which arrived on Tuesday via a usually reliable source, suggests Apple has scaled back its plan for an autonomous car, with some elements yet to be agreed upon.

Read more
Ford and VW close down Argo AI autonomous car unit
An Argo AI autonomous car on the road.

Autonomous-car specialist Argo AI is closing down after Ford and Volkswagen, Argo's main backers, ended support for the Pittsburgh-based company.

First reported by TechCrunch and later confirmed by the two auto giants, some of the 2,000 workers at Argo will transfer to Ford and Volkswagen, while others without an offer will receive a severance package. Argo’s technology is also set to end up in the possession of the two companies, though at this stage it’s not clear how it might be shared.

Read more