Frisco police help train autonomous semi trucks
FRISCO - What would you do if you were driving down I-45 and noticed the semi truck one lane over didn't have a driver?
Aurora Innovation is a self-driving technology company that's in the driver's seat of developing autonomous freight trucks.
"Currently, we haul freight between Dallas and Houston, as well as Fort Worth and El Paso for major shippers and carriers," said Jake Martin, a spokesperson for Aurora Innovation. "So that means for many folks in Texas, whether they're small businesses, consumers, you have already received a package shipped by an autonomous truck."
For now, their autonomous trucks have vehicle operators in the front seat but by the end of next year, Aurora's trucks will go driverless.
Frisco Police is helping Aurora ensure their self-driving trucks are operating safely. For the last two days, officers staged mock traffic stops with Aurora trucks along I-45 in Ennis.
"We can learn how to deal with autonomous vehicles," said Grant Cottingham, the public information officer for the Frisco Police Department. "How they're going to react so that we can react appropriately and so that way they can collect the data to ensure that their vehicles on the road are as safe as they possibly can be."
The trucks in these tests had vehicle operators. But Aurora says they'll use what they've learned in the mock stops to make sure their trucks are safe and road-ready once they go driver-free.
"Our trucks have a series of different sensors that help them see and understand and navigate the world," said Martin. "So using these sensors, our trucks can recognize the police vehicles. They see those flashing lights and then if we're the one being pulled over, we're going to pull over to the side of the road."
Frisco Police says it's important for law enforcement to practice interacting with self-driving vehicles, so they can be ready too.
"While we may not see them now we want to be prepared for them in the future," said Cottingham.