Self drive lorries let loose on UK Roads.

Few people may know it but in 2018 several small convoys took part in a potentially ground breaking experiment. Many within the haulage industry believe self-drive lorries are the future of the industry and this is exactly what was being tested.

Driving in convoys of 3 with only the lead truck being driven the lorries took to UK roads to test out how effective they might be. The lead vehicle controls acceleration and braking of all the lorries following and each of the vehicles instantly respond to any changes in speed. The lorries each maintain a short distance between each other to reduce traffic congestion. The following vehicles of course had a driver present should an emergency arise but this might not be so if the technology was ever fully adopted.

Understandbly the technology has faced some backlash, not least from drivers’ unions who are concerned millions of jobs are at risk if self-drive fleets become a reality.

It seems unlikely, certainly in the short term, that we will see a wide spread adoption of driverless lorries on the congested UK road network until our traffic systems are better able to accomodate them.

So fear not - for now your Fern Freight HIAB will be arriving with a fully trained driver. Especially as driverless cranes seem even further down the road!