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Federal transportation agencies hosted a truck platooning demonstration on Interstate 66 in Northern Virginia last week to showcase the advancements of autonomous technology ready for commercial use next year.

Frank Marino sat in a repurposed U.S. Coast Guard boat bobbing in Boston Harbor one morning late last month. He pointed the boat straight at a buoy several hundred yards away, while his colleague Mohamed Saad Ibn Seddik used a laptop to set the vehicle on a course that would run right into it.

Navistar’s president and CEO told a Senate panel last week that autonomous vehicle technology likely won’t eliminate the need for truck drivers, but drivers may need to gain new skills as they’re asked to manage several trucks at once.

WASHINGTON — As autonomous technology evolves, drivers will remain integral to the movement of goods and services for the foreseeable future, top trucking executives told senators concerned about potential disruptions in the labor force.

A U.S. Senate committee is considering whether legislation dealing with the future of self-driving cars should also pave the way to self-driving trucks, considering the impact such technology could have on millions of workers.

Tesla Inc.’s design of its Autopilot system contributed to a 2016 fatal crash in Florida, accident investigators concluded as they recommended all automakers prevent autonomous driving systems from being used on roads for which they are not designed.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao on Sept. 12 unveiled updated federal guidance for automated driving systems for industry and states that want to deploy self-driving vehicles.

The top driver at this year’s National Truck Driving Championships will be honored at the Management Conference & Exhibition hosted by American Trucking Associations in October.

Super smart robot trucks capable of communicating with other robot trucks while they haul freight along highways, without a driver, is no longer science fiction.