Torc Begins Testing on Key Laredo-Dallas Lane
[Stay on top of transportation news: .]
şÚÁĎłÔąĎÍř began testing its autonomous trucks on what is expected to be the Daimler Truck subsidiary’s first driverless freight lane between Laredo and Dallas, the parent company said.
One of the busiest freight lanes in the U.S., the Texas route passes through San Antonio and Austin.
Laredo accounted for nearly 40% of incoming trucks from Mexico, according to the most recent Bureau of Transportation Statistics data.
San Antonio and Dallas rank as the seventh and ninth largest U.S. cities by population, respectively, according to the Census Bureau.
Torc’s autonomous trucks already were being tested on routes in New Mexico, Texas and Arizona.
The company recently signed a lease for an autonomous hub in the Dallas-Fort Worth area that will serve as the operations base for its autonomous testing efforts, customer freight pilots and future commercial endeavors.
Daimler Truck delivers latest iteration of autonomous-ready truck platform based on the new Fifth Generation Cascadia with redundant safety features to : — Daimler Truck (@DaimlerTruck)
Torc already had a temporary office in the Dallas-Fort Worth area but is upsizing its operations in the metropolitan area ahead of the 2027 start of fully driverless operations.
Alongside finding a larger Dallas-Fort Worth office, the company plans to open an Ann Arbor, Mich., office before the end of the second quarter, Torc said in December.
Consequently, Torc’s original testing location in Albuquerque, N.M., and technology hub in Stuttgart, Germany, are being wound down.
Daimler Truck North America, meanwhile, has begun delivering self-driving configurations of the latest iteration of its flagship on-highway tractor to Torc — the fifth-generation Freightliner Cascadia.
Freightliner launched the fifth-generation Cascadia on Oct. 15 after publicly showcasing the tractor for the first time at American Trucking Associations’ Management Conference & Exhibition.
Brian Antonellis of Fleet Advantage and TMC General Chairman Radu Mihai discuss the need for targeted training programs for heavy-duty technicians that build a capable, future-ready workforce. Tune in above or by going to .ĚýĚý
Serial production of the tractor — the first revamp in five years — is scheduled to begin in mid-2025. Freightliner opened the order book April 10.
The autonomous-ready configuration of the best-selling Class 8 tractor in North America is equipped with redundant safety features such as braking and steering, and is intended for series production, DTNA said.
“Delivering the latest iteration of our autonomous-ready vehicle platform, including production-intent autonomy hardware to Torc, marks a significant milestone for Daimler Truck towards series maturity and scaling,” said Joanna Buttler, head of the autonomous technology group for Daimler Truck.
In 2024, Torc completed driverless test runs on a multilane test track in Texas. Testing on public roads is the next development step for the company.
Vaughan SchmidtĚý
“Our strong collaboration with Daimler Truck represents six years of success in advancing the future of freight. Fully integrating Torc’s autonomous driver with Daimler Truck’s Freightliner Cascadia platform creates an industry-first, scalable, physical-AI autonomous trucking solution,” Torc CEO Peter Vaughan Schmidt said.
“This will unlock tremendous value for our customers by addressing key industry pain points and presents a clear opportunity to generate revenue and drive meaningful transformation across the industry,” Vaughan Schmidt added.
To enable Society of Automotive Engineers Level 4 autonomous driving, Daimler Truck built redundancy into the Cascadia platform for safety-critical systems for safe, driverless operations, Torc said.
°±đ˛Ô˛Ô±đ°ůĚý
Safety at Torc will now be overseen by Steve Kenner. The company on April 17 announced Kenner as the company’s chief safety officer. He will report to Vaughan Schmidt.
Kenner most recently served as chief safety officer at General Motors’ self-driving passenger vehicle unit Cruise. Prior to that, Kenner worked for Ford, Apple and Locomation, an autonomous trucking company that was wound down in 2023 due to cash flow problems.
“Steve’s impressive career trajectory and commitment to safety make him the ideal candidate to lead Torc’s safety, regulatory, compliance and government affairs efforts,” said Schmidt.
“His deep expertise and leadership in the automotive industry will be instrumental in advancing our mission to commercialize autonomous trucks and ensure the highest standards of safety and regulatory compliance,” he added.
Want more news? Listen to today's daily briefing belowĚýor go here for more info:
