Locomation announced it has joined the Partnership for Transportation Innovation and Opportunity (PTIO) to support the organization’s mission of preparing workers for the technology while ensuring deployment of autonomous vehicles will improve quality of life and economic opportunity for all Americans.
“Locomation supports the work of PTIO aimed at creating opportunities and benefits for U.S workers from autonomous vehicle solutions,” said Finch Fulton, vice president of policy and strategy at Locomation. “We are an all-American company committed to working proactively to ensure autonomous trucking technologies can work for the American worker, not instead of the American worker. We look forward to bringing our human-centric approach to PTIO and to working with other leading companies and associations to understand the autonomous vehicle – workforce nexus and prepare workers for the technology, thereby strengthening our domestic supply chains and our global competitiveness.”
Starting in 2022, Locomation and its first customer, Wilson Logistics, will deploy the company’s Autonomous Relay Convoy (ARC) solution in actual service. The two-truck, two-driver safe, responsible, and financially sustainable system allows drivers to drive twice as far, twice as fast while ensuring they don’t exceed Hours of Service limitations.
Next, Locomation will deploy a two-truck, one-driver Drone Follower system that will allow drivers to haul twice the load and generate twice as much revenue per route. In the future, data generated by these deployments will inform the development and enable the deployment of hub-to-hub and dock-to-dock autonomous solo vehicle products.
“Locomation’s human-guided approach to autonomous vehicle technology and focus on its value for the transportation industry and economy as a whole is aligned with our mission and objectives,” said Kathryn Branson, executive director of PTIO. “We welcome their perspective and input and look forward to working with them to effectively prepare the U.S. workforce for this highly beneficial innovation.”
