Freight Guru
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ODFL | Self Driving
- Thread starter Freight Guru
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Grumpy O' Man
TB Veteran
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Beer Assistant Please.......
Wow that is cool and scary. Scary in the fact that there is a fear of everybody losing their jobs to robots and computers in the future. Not only in the transportation industry, but pretty much most facets of life. The need for human employment will be much diminished, as we struggle to find work for everyone that wants a job now. That is worrisome.
Have you seen the cost of one of these...not worried. And they still have to have a driver in them. Now I'll get paid sleep. Love my job!!!
Dick Dastardly
Drat, Double Drat, and Triple Drat!
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Won't be making top dollar to be paid to babysit a computer. Dock workers will hook sets. OD will probably have locations along freeways where sets are strung up and the auto truck is just sent on its way.
Brush up on your city skills if you want to stay around.
Brush up on your city skills if you want to stay around.
By that time I'll be old enough to be a greater at Wal-Mart anyway. And we don't get paid the big money because our job is hard.
I'll be long retired before I have to go back to city work.
Well at least the city drivers are always damaging equipment. So their will always be a opening for us
Freightsup
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I hate the thought of a self driving vehicle for all of the above reasons. The number one in my mind is because of job loss though.
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Six years,five months,two days (not that I'm counting,or anything like that)I'll happily give the keys to OTTO! As it is I won't be surprised if some of us are called upon to ride and monitor on one of these in the near future. I'd be willing to predict OD would at least start testing these when they come available in different parts of the system.
Maybe, but I still think they'll be too expensive for ltl. They only ordered 1000 new tractors this year because of cost. I wonder if they'll do day cabs with this technology.
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On longer rural runs I can't see them not trying them, As for being too expensive for LTL I disagree,with benefits an (on some bids) LTL driver has a total compensation package coming close to 150k yearly, and as the technology improves self drivers are just going to get cheaper in the future.
Guess it'll all depend on the cost of the service to run them. Constant updates for construction, stuff like that. A lot to figure out in the next ten years.
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The freight job of the future will be maintaining these things,not only will you need mechanical chops, you'll need a lot of tech savvy for the guidance systems. I can only imagine what field service would pay/charge for a road failure of one of these units.
LTLIndentured
TB Veteran
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Wouldn't the big cost cost be insurance? Until it's proven to be 99% accident proof the lawyers will make auto trucks very expensive to insure. I can see the ad now... In a wreck? Need a check? Were you the victim of a computer virus driving a big truck? ... Call 555- AUTO
Aladdin Sane
TB Lurker
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I think we are a long way from having to worry about this. One can only imagine the scads of bureaucratic red tape there is to wade thru,feasability studies etc... Hell,I may be down to working 45-50hrs a week by that time! Not gonna fret just yet.