Self-Steering Trucks Hit the Highway

[Anchor]

Starting tomorrow, July 1, autonomous freight trucks will be deployed on highways. This marks the full-scale introduction of autonomous driving into the freight transport sector, which has previously been limited to services like robotaxis.

Reporter Jeon Hyeong-u has the story.

[Reporter]

A 25-ton autonomous truck is driving down the highway.

Although a person is sitting in the driver's seat, they are not holding the steering wheel, and their feet are off the pedals.

Despite this, the steering wheel turns on its own, and the vehicle changes lanes.

Computers and monitors are installed throughout the interior of the vehicle.

Multiple LiDAR sensors and cameras are mounted on the truck, acting as the eyes of the autonomous vehicle.

With the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport granting permission for paid autonomous freight transport, these trucks will be deployed on highways starting tomorrow.

Autonomous vehicles have primarily been used for passenger transport services such as robotaxis, but the technology has now expanded into the freight sector.

The plan is to have a person in the driver's seat through the end of this year, move to having a person in the passenger seat next year, and eventually transition to fully unmanned operations.

Initially, the trucks will be used to transport parcels from Gunsan, Jeonbuk, through Jeonju, to Daejeon.

[Seo Hyun-chul / PR Team Leader, RideFlux: We need to proceed with commercialization in stages. We plan to start during late-night hours or in sections where there is a shortage of truck drivers.]

The autonomous driving company stated, "The vehicles will operate at speeds of 90 km/h or less and minimize lane changes," adding, "It could be safer as it eliminates the possibility of accidents caused by driver negligence, such as drowsy driving."

However, some are calling for countermeasures, as the reduction in jobs for truck drivers could happen faster than expected.

[Kim Pil-soo / Professor, Department of Future Automotive Engineering, Daelim University: As autonomous driving is applied, it will bring about a revolution in logistics, which could lead to job insecurity. The government and local authorities need to quickly prepare measures such as vocational retraining and job placement programs.]

There is also a call for urgent discussions regarding the liability and scope of responsibility in the event of an accident, as these have not yet been clearly established.

Reported by Jeon Hyeong-u | Video by Kang Si-woo | Video Editing by Choi Hye-young | Graphics by Jang Chae-woo
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.