Trucking news and briefs for Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024:
J.B. Hunt completes 50,000 autonomous miles with Kodiak, Bridgestone partnership
J.B. Hunt is transporting weekly loads of passenger car tires for Bridgestone using a Kodiak Robotics autonomous truck.J.B. Hunt
J.B. Hunt Transport Services (CCJ Top 250, No. 3), through its partnership with autonomous truck developer Kodiak Robotics and Bridgestone Americas, has surpassed 50,000 autonomous long-haul trucking miles.
The companies have an ongoing weekly delivery collaboration incorporating Kodiak autonomous trucks to ship Bridgestone passenger car tires between South Carolina and Dallas. Since launching in January, the autonomous route has been driven with no accidents and achieved 100% on-time pick-up and delivery, and the companies have expanded the collaboration to include additional weekly deliveries along the route, the companies said.
Utilizing Kodiak’s hub-to-hub autonomous delivery model, the long-haul stretch of the route from Atlanta to Dallas – approximately 750 miles and 16 hours – is completed using Kodiak autonomous driving technology, which is fitted with Bridgestone M719 drive tires and R213 steer tires. J.B. Hunt transports the trailers to and from Bridgestone facilities and Kodiak hubs. The companies leverage J.B. Hunt 360box, a network of 14,000-plus company trailers, to secure capacity for the return trip from Dallas, preventing empty miles and improving route efficiency.
“Working closely with Kodiak and Bridgestone, we were able to deliver a complementary solution that integrates autonomous technology with day-to-day operations while also solving backhaul challenges,” said Nick Hobbs, chief operating officer and president of contract services at J.B. Hunt. “It’s a great example of how our mode-neutral approach can leverage multiple service offerings to produce efficient, value-driven solutions unique to our customers’ needs.”
The full route entails J.B. Hunt moving the load from Bridgestone’s Aiken Passenger Tire plant in Graniteville, South Carolina, to Kodiak’s Atlanta-area autonomous truckport in Villa Rica, Georgia. Kodiak autonomous trucks then complete the long-haul stretch of the route from Atlanta to Kodiak’s Lancaster, Texas facility. A two-person-team of Kodiak safety drivers oversee the seamless and continuous operation of the autonomous truck.
J.B. Hunt then transports the load approximately 50 miles from Lancaster to Bridgestone’s Roanoke distribution center.
For the trip from Dallas back to Atlanta, J.B. Hunt leverages its J.B. Hunt 360box program to identify additional customers with live and drop freight needs along that route. Kodiak completes the delivery autonomously to Atlanta, and then J.B. Hunt transports the load to its next destination.
CARB, Calstart hosting zero-emission ride-and-drive
The California Air Resources Board and Calstart are hosting a free “Zero-Emissions Showcase + Ride & Drive” featuring medium- and heavy-duty trucks (Class 2b-8), heavy-duty off-road equipment, school and transit buses, and commercial vans.
The event will be held Wednesday, Aug. 14, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific in Oakland at the Oakland Coliseum.
Heavy-duty trucks that will be at the event include the Nikola BEV and FCEV, Freightliner eCascadia, Kenworth T680E, Mack MD Electric, Volvo VNR Electric and more.
In addition to the opportunity to test drive zero-emission heavy- and medium-duty trucks and more, CARB staff will also be on hand to answer questions, presentations will be made on the Advanced Clean Fleets and Clean Truck Check regulations and more.
Registration for the event is free and is available online here.
