we all know they are coming and others like myself will say that’s the end of our careers,but how many haulage companies are going to be able to afford these self drive trucks,i reckon old school drivers like us will still be needed,how long did auto boxes take to come out,10 years or more,now they are in every new truck and there are still manual boxes about,the big companies like stobarts will no doubt get them but the smaller haulage companies may not so there will still be positions for us older drivers,if wagons nowadays are £100,000+ with trailers how much would these self drive trucks be with all the technology,it could quite easily take 20 odd years before old wagons are phased out,so I reckon they [haulage companies ]will still need us blokes[ and women]suppose all we can do is wait and see
Won’t happen in the next 25 years.
Self drive trucks, self serve checkouts, fully automated warehouses, fully automated production lines all set to put millions out of work. Where are all these people going to get the money to buy the goods that these fully automated industries produce?
xichrisxi:
Won’t happen in the next 25 years.
youre right …it’ll happen much sooner than that the way technology is ramping on…
The driver wont be put out of work though as loading and unloading will still require some human input, job description will be ‘operator’ and most likely attract a different type of person to do the job to what we have now. Self driving vehicles will become the norm and as battery technology moves on the diesel engine will eventually have its day too. Its not all doom and gloom as some will have it, work will still be here in the industry just a different format and the air we breathe will be cleaner…
I don’t think it can happen until they build sensors etc into the roads. I read somewhere that self drive cars work best on wide roads with good markings in good weather! Well I’m here to tell you that I do too, in fact we all do. ******* idiots!
Only supermarket, parcel firms, pallet network etc trunk drivers need worry. 
Self drive trucks will only work once every collection and delivery point is equipped to support them.
xichrisxi:
Won’t happen in the next 1 25 years.
ftfy 
A self drive truck that can navigate a town centre on its own is years and years away, one that can drive on the motorway however will be with us a lot sooner, that will however still require a driver to supervise and drive when the truck is back on normal rds. Good point from the op tho the manufacturers are going to want to recoup there r&d costs so operators can expect to see a big jump in cost.
andy12:
A self drive truck that can navigate a town centre on its own is years and years away, one that can drive on the motorway however will be with us a lot sooner, that will however still require a driver to supervise and drive when the truck is back on normal rds. Good point from the op tho the manufacturers are going to want to recoup there r&d costs so operators can expect to see a big jump in cost.
Self driving HGV’s delivering to large warehouses on the outskirts of towns/cities and an electric tram/rail network taking deliveries into the centre will be on the cards with the eventual banning of anything but electric cars from city centres…
Technology will never replace humans on this scale
It will implode if they tried it.as said how will people buy product without work .technology and greed will see a few people richer with nothing to spend the riches on as knowone will work due to technology .its all gash
I just wish my truck would keep the bluettooth coNecton to my phone working
Would love to see one of these self drive trucks cope with a day of class 1 multi drop around the cash and carrys of Bradford for example. Total pie in the sky.
The transitionary period will be great. If I can get on a motorway, hit a button then get my laptop to have a wa… watch some tv shows then all the better.
I would guess that getting one from A-B and on a loading bay is a very very long way off.
Other road users will soon catch on to the fact that the lorry will always give way…and exploit it to the hilt.
I see lines of stationary trucks at every junction…as everybody just pushes past.
A dive bombers ■■■■■■■■■.
I always thought self driving trucks would be extremely vulnerable to hijack. All of would take is a couple of Ford Transits with towbars to block the road while the miscreants loot the back.
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commonrail2:
Other road users will soon catch on to the fact that the lorry will always give way…and exploit it to the hilt.
I see lines of stationary trucks at every junction…as everybody just pushes past.
A dive bombers ■■■■■■■■■.
the idea is to have the vehicles in convoy on the motorways with around 6 to 10 ft in between controlled by computer,that was the argument from car drivers saying what if they want to come off at an exit and they can’t get between the lorries how can they come off,you can imagine it can’t you,car drivers doomed to travel the motorway forever,lol
I can see a lot of hgv drivers putting in a claim for whiplash when cars cut up in front of you and the truck slams on then making the trucks behind slam on. I bet someone will end up decapitated from it
…and can you imagine what fun,kids could have,with a convoy of driverless trucks.
So you think Merc, Scania, DAF etc are spending billions just for the heck of it? You don’t think the self driving convoys used across Europe for Rotterdam are real? Haven’t seen the self loading warehouses yet where there is no forkie to load or off load you? Have you been to some of the newest warehouses where the whole thing inside is run by self driving forklifts and robots?
Self driving cars and trucks will be here quicker then you think and there won’t be an issue with other vehicles, they will be slowly and surely banned. Self driving cars are cheaper, more efficient and safer, there will be huge penalties and taxes to keep driving your own beater among them, if you can do it at all.
Insurance companies and governments alike are pushing this to no end. It is one part of all our economies that can be automated fairly quickly and will have a huge effect on the efficiency and cost of distribution.
Truck platoons have been tested on public roads in Europe for a year.
eutruckplatooning.com/default.aspx
The UK government is having a consultation now to change the laws early next year to promote self driving cars and trucks on public roads in the UK