For years, autonomous trucking was always just around the corner. Not anymore. Driverless trucks are now hauling freight and generating revenue on public highways. Companies such as Aurora have . While these operations feature traditional trucks with the driver removed, purpose-built, cableless vehicles are no longer a futuristic concept. The question facing policymakers is no longer whether autonomous trucking will arrive. It is how it will be governed. This is not a new question by any stretch, as many in the industry have been asking this for more than a decade.
This is why the Department of Transportation's recently released America Leads: DOT's National Strategy for Automated Vehicles is an important signal. The strategy outlines a federal vision for automated vehicles through 2030 and reinforces DOT's commitment to updating regulations, promoting innovation, and enabling interstate deployment. But the document is primarily a roadmap. It does not answer many of the operational questions that motor carriers, enforcement agencies, insurers, and the public have been asking.
For its part, NHTSA has been focused on modernizing vehicle standards written for trucks with human drivers, including rules governing controls, visibility systems, and other equipment assumptions that may not apply to vehicles without drivers or traditional controls like steering wheels and pedals. FMCSA's job is different, and arguably more complicated, because it regulates the physical operation of commercial vehicles. Someone must determine how regulations governing driver qualifications, hours of service, roadside inspections, maintenance responsibilities, drug testing requirements, and enforcement will apply when no driver is sitting behind the wheel. FMCSA's long-awaited ADS rulemaking
Perhaps the most fundamental policy question is surprisingly simple: who, or what, is the driver? Much of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations is built around the concept of a “driver” operating a commercial motor vehicle. As autonomous technology advances, regulators will need to determine whether certain responsibilities shift to the automated driving system, remain with the motor carrier, or are shared among multiple parties. FMCSA's forthcoming ADS framework is expected to begin addressing how regulations written for human drivers should apply when driving decisions are made by software rather than a person.
Consider a routine roadside inspection. Today's enforcement model assumes that an officer can signal a truck to pull over and then approach the driver to request documents, ask questions, and conduct an inspection. Driverless trucks challenge that entire process. How does an officer communicate with an autonomous commercial vehicle that has no occupant? How does an ADS-equipped vehicle recognize and respond to enforcement instructions? ? What should a pre-trip inspection look like, and who is qualified to conduct them? These are practical operational questions that existing regulations are silent on because they were written for human-operated trucks.
Remote assistance adds another layer of complexity. Many autonomous trucking operations have remote operators who can monitor vehicles, provide guidance, or intervene in unusual situations. But what qualifications should those individuals possess? Should a remote operator hold a CDL? How many vehicles can one person oversee at the same time? What training, testing, or certification should be required for these individuals? The answers will shape not only safety oversight but also the future workforce supporting autonomous freight operations.
The technology may be here, but the federal framework governing it is still under construction. NHTSA can determine whether the vehicle design is safe. FMCSA must determine how it operates safely within the nation's interstate commercial transportation system. Until those questions are answered, the most important development in autonomous trucking may not be happening on the highway at all. It may be what is happening in Washington, D.C.
