In a statement this week, Aurora Innovation announced that its soon-to-be-released self-driving trucks will operate without a driver, even when the weather is not cooperating.
We’ve been promised self-driving trucks for years, with ambitious entrepreneurs and lofty concept vehicles promising the world without much to show for it. In 2025, there are some trucks on the road that can drive on their own, but none that do so without a driver present.
Aurora is looking to change that, with a fully autonomous truck that will, rain or shine, be hitting the road soon.
Aurora Adds Inclement Weather to Autonomous Driving Framework
Despite the company’s lofty aspirations, Aurora has decided that it’s not going to be intimidated by a bit of wind and rain, with an announcement Tuesday that its fully autonomous trucks will, in fact, be operated in inclement weather.
Aurora uses something called the Safety Case Framework to operate its autonomous vehicles, which “combines guidance from government organizations, best practices from safety-critical industries, voluntary industry standards and consortia, academic research, and what an organization has learned in its own work.”
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The company announced that it would be adding parameters to this framework that would allow it to more effectively take weather into account when driving.
When and Where Is Aurora Launching Autonomous Trucks?
Aurora Innovations is set to release fully autonomous vehicles in Texas this April, which means that this announcement is going to have an immediate impact on this upcoming release.
Aurora Innovations also has plans to launch fully autonomous trucks in New Mexico and Arizona at some point in 2025, but no official date has been set for those states.
The states in question are a good indicator of why Aurora Innovations is so confident in its vehicles ability to handle the elements, with Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico well known for their less-than-inclement weather compared to other territories across the US.
Aurora Innovations and Safety
While this news may sound a bit alarming, especially if you’re planning on driving on the roads of Texas next month, rest assured, Aurora Innovations is fully committed to safety when it comes to its vehicles.
“At Aurora, our philosophy isn’t just safety first – it’s safety always. Our safety approach spans both product and organization, and in this report, we’ve shared a behind-the-scenes look into our safety systems. With the launch of the Aurora Driver, the world will experience driverless trucks safely delivering freight on public roads for the first time.” – Nat Beuse, Chief Safety Officer at Aurora Innovations
Still, tackling the fully autonomous trucking problem is going to be a steep undertaking, and when you add the wind and rain of the Texas summer into the mix, who knows what can happen.
