Shift Magazine - December 2021 - 3

I
f you want to pick a milestone in the
convergence of trucks and new mobility,
rewind six and a half years to the evening of
May 5, 2015.
STAFF
Daimler introduced what it called the world's
first autonomous truck licensed to drive on
public roads, and it did so in a spectacle worthy
of Hollywood. It sent the truck, aptly named the
Freightliner Inspiration, on an autonomous trek
across the Hoover Dam while simultaneously
projecting video images onto the dam's massive
concrete wall.
The 30-minute show earned Daimler a Guinness world record for the
projection with the highest-ever light output - 1.17 million lumens. The
record would be broken a few weeks later, but Daimler had achieved
something much more lasting: It demonstrated the possibilities that come
with adding autonomous technology to the largest vehicles on the road.
Then came another high-profile event: In October 2016, Otto, a truck
technology venture Uber had just acquired, autonomously transported more
than 50,000 cans of Budweiser 120 miles through Colorado.
Meantime, electrified-truck projects emerged, with automakers such as
Toyota, Hyundai, Volvo, Daimler and Nikola either equipping or announcing
plans to equip Class 8 trucks with fuel cell powertrains. And some, most
famously Tesla, announced battery-electric truck projects.
As you'll read in this issue of Shift, trucks have shown themselves to be
a smart platform for automation and electrification technology, even if they
don't get the same attention as the latest robotaxi or electric sports car.
One could argue that trucking stands to benefit from automation and
electrification at least as much as personal transportation does.
While the benefits of cleaner truck powertrains are well understood, the
benefits may not be so apparent when it comes to high levels of automation
for trucks. It's easy to get caught up in the " wow " and to forget about the
" why. " I'm reminded of something Daimler said at the time of the 2015
demo: Automation doesn't replace the truck driver, the automaker noted; it
relieves the driver from " tiring and often monotonous long-distance routes. "
The company reasoned that the driver could gain time to tackle other
tasks and transition into more of a transport manager role. Meantime,
automation would lead to improved fuel efficiency, safer highways and
reduced CO2 emissions.
Someday, perhaps. The number of pilot programs and partnerships
exploring electrified, automated and even driverless trucks is growing by the
day (See " The Contenders " on page 12 ), yet we're in the early days.
Yes, it takes more than chips, batteries, sensors and software to resolve
supply chain issues, attract and retain good truck drivers, and tackle climate
change. These are complex problems. At least the industry is off to a start.
After all, the Hoover Dam wasn't built in a day.
Editor
Leslie J. Allen
Chief of Editorial
Operations
Dave Versical
Executive Editor
Jamie Butters
Managing Editor
Mary Beth Vander Schaaf
Deputy Mobility Editor
Pete Bigelow
Reporters
John Irwin
Audrey LaForest
C.J. Moore
Wes Raynal
Copy Editors
Amy Butters
Tim Good
Elizabeth Hardy
Cindy Orosco-Wright
Contributors
Sebastian Blanco
Gail Kachadourian Howe
Jack Keebler
Design Director
Steve Massie
Leslie J. Allen, Editor
lallen@crain.com
december 2021 * shift
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Shift Magazine - December 2021

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