Trucks without drivers on roads - 20th January 2023

Scania, the Swedish truck maker, has taken a big step. It's the first company in Europe to test driverless lorries. For now, a driver still sits in the front. However, the truck's driving itself.

The lorry looks normal, but it has several cameras and sensors - 'lidars' - on the roof. Inside, equipment links to a computer. All the information from the sensors and GPS controls the truck. Göran Fjällid's one of Scania's engineers.

Göran Fjällid: "This was a normal truck but they have put a lot of sensors in the truck. This was a lidar. It was a light and the second lidar and we have the third lidar in the front."

Göran Fjällid: "And we have the other sensor in the roof. It was 10 cameras and one lidar, long distance lidar, and we have GPS and some other sensors."

If there's a problem, Scania's control centre can immediately solve it. The driver can also take control by putting their foot on the pedal.

Truck companies around the world are in the race to develop self-driving lorries. It's necessary too, because there's a lack of drivers internationally. In 2021, 2.6 million driving jobs weren't filled. Peter Hafmar, Scania's vice-president, believes in driverless trucks. He says they're safer and greener.

Peter Hafmar: "Then we'll also have safety. The computer and the sensor sets are very safe so they don't get distracted with check their phones or something like that. And also they have the environmental aspect that, well we don't have to focus on drivers' hours. We can drive all 24/7 and we can reduce the speed, which then reduce the energy consumption, so we don't have to charge the vehicle."

There are still some issues to sort out, like road laws in various countries. But we can expect to see driverless trucks in the late 2020s or early 2030s.