Waymo Via Trucking autonomous trucks are traversing highways in Arizona, according to a report from AZFamily.com.
The company's blue semis have been seen on the Loop 202 or I-10 around Phoenix. They're part of a pilot program in Arizona and Texas.
You can see the outlet's video report here.
"The last year really put a spotlight on the truck driver shortage," said John Verdon with Waymo Via Trucking's lead business and partnerships. "It's an area where our technology can help immensely."
Verdon told AZFamily that the company's autonomous technology is being used with existing trucking companies experiencing a driver shortage. "We are very much focused on automating the long haul highway driving; that's the hardest trucking job to recruit, given that a driver has to spend days, weeks away from their family," said Verdon.
Waymo also offers a robotaxi service in a 50-square-mile portion of Chandler, Arizona, but has yet to offer fully autonomous rides to the public elsewhere.
Right now, the autonomous trucks in Arizona and Texas have people inside the cab, but in the coming years, no one will be inside, the report says. The first fleet will drive across the southwest in "the coming years."
Source: AZFamily.com
