Einride’s self-driving van, which does not have a cab for a human safety operator, says the vehicle needs to be approved by the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) to operate on public roads. While there are many self-driving truck companies doing freight in the U.S. today, they are all based on existing truck modifications, and almost none of them are electric.
Einride said the milestone marks the first time a purpose-built autonomous electric truck has been licensed to operate on public roads, however, it is reminiscent of self-driving car company Nuro’s 2020 application for a temporary exemption from certain low-speed vehicle standard requirements. Nuro’s vehicles, which use public roads to deliver food and groceries, are also built with no space for drivers or passengers.
So the company needs NHTSA approval for a new type of vehicle that doesn’t have certain human-centric features like mirrors or windshields. Presumably, the approval of the Einride application is similar in nature. Einride did say that approval is conditional on the company adhering to an established place and time.
Einride’s self-driving vans will operate on a mixed-traffic, mile-long road between a GEA factory and a warehouse in Selmer, Tennessee, starting in the third quarter of 2022. Einride has been piloting its self-driving vans with GEA at the company’s fenced warehouse in Louisville since November 2021.
During the initial two-week pilot, the self-driving vehicles will carry the cargo and coordinate with teams at the warehouse for loading and unloading. According to the company, a remote operator will monitor operations and provide assistance or guidance if needed during critical low-speed operations. For example, a remote operator might assist in reversing a vehicle to a dock or wait for workers to unload a cargo hold. Einride is not, and in most other cases, the vehicle operates autonomously.
