Nevada, which is known for its glamorous resort city, Las Vegas earned a distinction few years ago when it issued licenses to self-driving cars on its roads. The state of Nevada has now allowed self-driven trucks to move in its cities after it issued the first license to a Daimler truck.
The Autonomous Vehicle (AV) plate was formally attached to the Freightliner on Tuesday at a time when predictions are being made about the possible revolution of goods transportation and transport sector employment.
Representatives from Daimler did not speak much about the decision, but clarified that the Daimler truck was given a full-operating license and not just one for testing. They spoke about the licensing as the first step towards a future where fleets of self-driven trucks will cover highway roads in more safe and efficient ways, reducing the chances of accidents caused by human truck drivers. The automatic truck has already been tested for over 15,000 kilometres.
Although this truck will not need someone on its steering wheel or pedals, the prototype truck still needs a human to operate it. This means truck drivers won’t be laid off, as they can be retrained to take up less tiring work of operators.