Advancing A National Regulatory Framework for Autonomous Trucks
Federal and state regulations that support the deployment of autonomous heavy-duty trucks are catching up with technology, but policymakers should move swiftly to update safety standards to align with heavy-duty vehicles that are driven by machines and not humans.
That was one of the takeaways from a fireside chat held by Plus on the state of autonomous trucking regulation. The forum featured Earl Adams Jr., VP of Public Policy and Regulatory Affairs for Plus, and Finch Fulton, Government Affairs and Policy Advisor, K&L Gates. Richard Bishop, Forbes author and principal of Richard Bishop Consulting, moderated the conversation, which took place during the Advanced Clean Transportation (ACT) Expo.
Two significant autonomous trucking developments occurred in the past few weeks alone, Fulton and Adams noted. U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy released a new federal framework for autonomous vehicles aimed at fostering innovation and streamlining regulatory processes. And the state of California, long a holdout in the autonomous trucking space, published draft regulations that would permit testing and deploying self-driving heavy-duty trucks on public roads.
“The regulatory lag has caught up,” Adams said. “We’re at a convergence point where technology and economics are coming together in a really good way.”
Updating an old rulebook
Among the barriers obstructing commercial deployment is a patchwork of state regulations for AV developers and their OEM partners. Only 25 states have policies that expressly allow autonomous vehicles to operate, slowing down testing and complicating compliance.
Another hurdle involves outdated standards for tasks that drivers perform outside of actually driving the truck, such as cargo inspection and interactions with first responders. Panelists noted that under current rulemaking, truck drivers who pull to the side of the road must place a warning triangle on the shoulder. Despite proposals to exempt autonomous drivers from this rule, federal guidance still requires human intervention, undercutting the inherent efficiencies of autonomous delivery, Adams noted.
Along with California’s new regulations, the latest AV framework will help unify state standards and modernize rules for autonomous trucking operations, albeit slower than industry would like, Fulton said. “We need Congress to tell the U.S. DOT to do its job,” he said.
Another sign of forward movement is California and the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) appear to be coalescing around a Safety Case Framework for ensuring the safety of autonomous vehicles. That approach, used to regulate the aviation industry, along with nuclear reactors and submarines, was favored by the first Trump Administration – and now it’s back, Fulton said.
A robust regulatory framework is critical to unlocking investment in autonomous trucks, Fulton added. In 2019, the release of AV 3.0, the first autonomous vehicle document applied to heavy-duty vehicles, led to $6 billion in direct private investment, he said.
Changing the workforce narrative
Industry must continue to address concerns – and dispel myths – about autonomous trucks displacing jobs, panelists emphasized. Truck driver shortages, high turnover rates and the creation of new upskilled jobs tied to autonomous delivery “mean there is no real ability for an autonomous trucking company to drive a trucker out of a job,” Fulton said.
Commercial deployment of autonomous trucks will progress in phases, Adams emphasized. “We’re not going to go from one truck to 700,000 autonomous trucks on the road. There is time for us to work together, find points of collaboration and plan for and create new jobs. This ecosystem is going to have a net positive benefit for everyone.”
The enormous success of the robotaxi industry offers lessons for winning over the public, another critical constituency as autonomous trucks move closer to commercialization.
People will say they are afraid of riding in a Waymo or a Zoox – until they actually ride in one, observed Fulton. “It’s going to be the same way with autonomous trucks. When they see how autonomous trucks operate, they will become more comfortable with them. Nothing beats exposure.”
