INDUSTRY NEWS
Embark self-driving trucks to move freight between San Antonio and Houston
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nterstate 10 between San Antonio and Houston will be the new stomping grounds for autonomous trucks from San Francisco-based software developer Embark Trucks. The selfdriving trucks will use one lane of the freeway for freight runs between the two Texas cities. Embark hopes to start using the route next year. In the beginning, each truck will have a back-up driver. The number of trucks deployed or the type of freight they will carry has not yet been announced but it seems certain Embark will work with development partners Werner Enterprises, Mesilla Valley Transportation and Bison Transport. To support its footprint in Texas, Embark announced a partnership
with the Texas A&M University Engineering Experiment Station. Embark will use Texas A&M’s test track and its Center for Autonomous Vehicles and Sensor Systems. “Our new footprint in Texas will support our growing network of partners and fuel our rapid growth across the Sunbelt,” said Stephen Houghton, Embark’s chief operations and fleet officer. Embark CEO Alex Rodrigues stated the new lane would not be segregated but rather a digital route on an existing road. He said that motorists will like sharing the road with Embark trucks. "I think the biggest thing you'll notice as a person driving on the road is that they're going to be a little bit more patient, a little
bit more law-abiding because they don't have to get there under the same kind of time pressure. They don't have the hoursof-service limitations.” Rodrigues said. In November, Embark merged with Northern Genesis Acquisition Corp. to go public. The deal is estimated to be worth $5 billion.
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January & February 2022
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