The passage of Act 130 last week, which permits the testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads without the need to have a licensed operator on board, is driving new opportunities for AV companies operating in the commonwealth.
And while the bulk of the legislation doesn't go into effect until July 2023, it already has AV companies planning for the near future amid the new reality that legally permits truly driverless vehicles in public settings, a final milestone that's needed before such technologies can be used at scale commercially.
For Lawrenceville-based Locomation Inc., an AV startup focused on bringing autonomous solutions to long-haul trucking, the legislation clears "major barriers" to deploying its technology throughout Pennsylvania.
Its future testing is now looking to essentially mimic that of its planned commercial launch, tentatively set for 2023, as it hopes to further validate the technology behind its autonomous relay convoy (ARC) — a platooning-like system where a human-driven truck is closely followed by one that is driven autonomously while a secondary driver rests inside, effectively doubling the range of transport as the two take turns leading and following throughout a trip.
Locomation has been able to test its ARC technology in Pennsylvania for years on public roads, but a human driver had to be inside both trucks throughout the whole process. The new legislation waives such a requirement and specifically allows platooning-based operators like Locomation to no longer have someone at the wheel in an autonomously-driven truck that is following a human-driven one.
"Fast forward to today, the capabilities of the technology and the model itself have matured to the point where a driver is only needed in the lead truck and the driver of the follower truck can be in sleeper mode," Locomation CEO and Co-Founder Çetin Meriçli said. "This effectively enables Locomation's commercial deployment model to be deployed in Pennsylvania."
Meriçli isn't racing to deploy self-driving trucks commercially just yet, however, as there's still plenty of work to be done to validate that the company's tech is safe.
Last June, it issued a comprehensive self-assessment of its autonomous trucking technology for the U.S. Department of Transportation and it submitted the findings of that report to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It plans to issue another similar report before its trucks begin commercial operations, the first of which are set for Aliquippa-based PGT Trucking Inc. and Missouri-based Wilson Logistics LLC in at least a limited initial capacity sometime next year.
And when that time comes, Locomation will be able to deploy its ARC system from coast to coast across at least 32 states, though the startup expects that figure to be higher over the coming months while it readies its tech.
"We have no federal regulatory barriers," Meriçli said. "As soon as the technology is ready, we're just going to go blasting."
As for the state's legislation on platooning, no more than three vehicles can make up the contents of a convoy and these vehicles can only travel on limited access highways or interstate highways unless explicitly permitted by PennDOT or by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.
"I think that this legislation couldn't have come at a better time for Locomation in our development," Meriçli said. "This legislation solidifies Pennsylvania as a leader in autonomous vehicles. That shows the rest of the world that the commonwealth is open to innovation and is open for business."
Locomation employs about 100 workers, about two-thirds of which work out of its Lawrenceville headquarters. It declined to disclose revenue figures.
